Design of aperiodic quality report in connected mode using quality definition as in msg3 for rel-16 emtc

ABSTRACT

An approach is described for a user equipment (UE) for enhanced machine-type communication (eMTC) in a connected mode, where the UE includes processor circuitry and radio front end circuitry. The processor circuitry is configured to perform a downlink (DL) quality measurement, and to generate a DL quality report based on the DL quality measurement, wherein a definition of the DL quality report matches a definition of quality report in Msg3. The radio front end circuitry is configured to transmit the DL quality report to a next generation base station (gNB).

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No.62/805,917, filed on Feb. 14, 2019, which is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety.

FIELD

Various embodiments generally may relate to the field of wirelesscommunications.

SUMMARY

An embodiment is described that is a user equipment (UE) for enhancedmachine-type communication (eMTC) in a connected mode, where the UEincludes processor circuitry and radio front end circuitry. Theprocessor circuitry is configured to perform a downlink (DL) qualitymeasurement, and to generate a DL quality report based on the DL qualitymeasurement, wherein a definition of the DL quality report matches adefinition of quality report in Msg3. The radio front end circuitry isconfigured to transmit the DL quality report to a next generation basestation (gNB).

Another embodiment is a method for enhanced machine-type communication(eMTC) in a connected mode by a user equipment (UE) that includes thefollowing steps. The method includes performing a downlink (DL) qualitymeasurement, and generating a DL quality report based on the DL qualitymeasurement, wherein a definition of the DL quality report matches adefinition of quality report in Msg3. The method also includestransmitting the DL quality report to a next generation base station(gNB).

Another embodiment is described that is computer-readable media (CRM)comprising computer instructions, where upon execution of theinstructions by one or more processors of an electronic device, causesthe electronic device to perform various steps. These steps includeperforming a downlink (DL) quality measurement, and generating a DLquality report based on the DL quality measurement, wherein a definitionof the DL quality report matches a definition of quality report in Msg3.The steps also include transmitting the DL quality report to a nextgeneration base station (gNB).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 depicts an architecture of a system of a network in accordancewith some embodiments.

FIG. 2 depicts an architecture of a system including a first corenetwork in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 3 depicts an architecture of a system including a second corenetwork in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 4 depicts an example of infrastructure equipment in accordance withvarious embodiments.

FIG. 5 depicts example components of a computer platform in accordancewith various embodiments

FIG. 6 depicts example components of baseband circuitry and radio frontend modules in accordance with various embodiments.

FIG. 7 is an illustration of various protocol functions that mayimplemented in a wireless communication device in accordance withvarious embodiments.

FIG. 8 illustrates components of a core network in accordance withvarious embodiments.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating components, according to someexample embodiments, of a system to support network functionsvirtualization (NFV).

FIG. 10 depicts a block diagram illustrating components, according tosome example embodiments, able to read instructions from amachine-readable or computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitorymachine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of themethodologies discussed herein.

FIG. 11 depicts an example procedure for practicing the variousembodiments discussed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings.The same reference numbers may be used in different drawings to identifythe same or similar elements. In the following description, for purposesof explanation and not limitation, specific details are set forth suchas particular structures, architectures, interfaces, techniques, etc. inorder to provide a thorough understanding of the various aspects ofvarious embodiments. However, it will be apparent to those skilled inthe art having the benefit of the present disclosure that the variousaspects of the various embodiments may be practiced in other examplesthat depart from these specific details. In certain instances,descriptions of well-known devices, circuits, and methods are omitted soas not to obscure the description of the various embodiments withunnecessary detail. For the purposes of the present document, the phrase“A or B” means (A), (B), or (A and B).

One enhancement for enhanced machine-type communication (eMTC) is toimprove DL transmission efficiency by specifying quality report in Msg3:

Improved DL transmission efficiency and/or UE power consumption:

-   -   Specify quality report in MSG3 at least for EDT

The quality report metric to be used in Msg3 has been agreed as follows:

For coverage enhancement (CE) Mode B, the downlink channel qualityreported in Msg3 is denoted as the repetition number that the UErecommends to achieve a hypothetical MPDCCH decoding BLER of 1%

For CE mode A (PRACH CE level 0, 1), the downlink channel quality is therepetition number and/or aggregation level that the UE needs to decodehypothetical MPDCCH with BLER of 1%

There is an objective to specify aperiodic quality report in connectedmode using same quality definition as in Msg3.

In Rel-13 eMTC, CQI is supported for CE mode A. The main motivation tofurther introduce aperiodic quality report using the same qualitydefinition as in Msg3 is to optimize the MPDCCH configuration (e.g.,configuration of parameter Rmax) in connected mode, as the agreedquality report definition is aligned with radio link failure criteria.The CQI reporting supported in Rel-13 eMTC for CE mode A may not be ableto provide accurate guidance when setting the MPDCCH configuration.

This disclosure describes the design of quality report in connected modefor eMTC using the same quality definition as in Msg3. In particular,described are the design of

-   -   Configuration, capability and applicability of this quality        report.    -   Quality report message    -   Triggering method.    -   Measurement reference resource

Configuration and Capability

For configuration of quality report in connected mode using the samequality report definition as in Msg3, it can be enabled/disabled by RRCsignaling, either in cell-specific manner (e.g. via MIB-BR, SIB1-BR orother SIBs), or in UE-specific manner (e.g. via UE-specific RRCmessage). This configuration can be enabled jointly with the qualityreport in Msg3, i.e. this feature and quality report in Msg3 are enabledand disabled together. Alternatively, the quality report in connectedmode using the same quality report definition as in Msg3 and the qualityreport in Msg3 can be configured separately. For example, the qualityreport in Msg3 can be configured via system information (e.g. SIB1-BR,SIB2 or other SIBs), while the quality report in connected mode can beconfigured via UE-specific RRC signaling.

Regarding applicability, in one embodiment, the quality report inconnected mode using the same quality report definition as in Msg3 issupported only in CE mode A, or only in CE mode B. Alternatively, it issupported for both CE mode A and CE mode B.

For UE capability,

-   -   In one embodiment, this feature is optional for Rel-16        NB-IoT/eMTC UEs. The UE can signal their capability regarding        the support of quality report in connected mode using the same        quality definition as in Msg3 via regular UE capability report    -   Alternatively, this feature can be mandatory for Rel-16        NB-IoT/eMTC UEs.    -   In another embodiment, the Rel-16 UEs supporting the quality        report in Msg3 should support the quality report in connected        mode using the same quality definition as in Msg3.

Quality Report Message

In one embodiment, the quality report can be carried in PUSCH. When theDL quality report is carried in PUSCH, in one example, RRC message orMAC CE as elaborated at the end of this IDF can be used. In addition,the DL quality report can be carried in PUSCH in the method similar tohow aperiodic CSI is encoded in legacy eMTC systems (e.g., 36.212Section 5.2.2.6).

In one embodiment, the size of the quality report can be the same asthat for quality report in Msg3. Alternatively, the size of the qualityreport can be the same as CSI report defined in Rel-13 eMTC (4 bits).

The size of the quality report in CE mode A and CE mode B can be thesame. Alternatively, different size can be defined for quality report indifferent CE modes. For example, 4 bits can be used for CE mode A, while3 bits can be used for CE mode B.

The embodiments regarding the message size and format disclosed in IDFAB9286 for Idle mode can be reused in connected mode. For completeness,we also include some embodiments below for the support of quality reportin connected mode.

With quality report size of N bits,

-   -   In one embodiment, the quality report can have 2{circumflex over        ( )}N candidates, where 2{circumflex over ( )}N repetitions can        be reported, or 2{circumflex over ( )}N−1 repetitions can be        reported with another state set for no quality reporting.    -   For CE mode A, if aggregation level (AL) is to be reported, it        can be decoded jointly with number of repetitions. For example,        the candidates can be AL=8, 16 or 24 with small number of        repetitions and AL=24 for large number of repetitions. As an        example, with N=4, the candidates can be AL of 8, 16 or 24 with        repetitions of 1, 2 or 4, and AL of 24 with repetitions of 8,        16, 32, 64, 128 or 256.    -   Alternatively, for CE mode A, n bits can be used for indication        of number of repetitions and m bits can be used for indication        of AL, where n+m=N. For example, n can be 2 for indication of 4        values out of {1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256}, and m can be 2        for indication of AL=8, 16 or 24. Alternatively, n can be 3 to        indicate repetitions 8 values out of {1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64,        128, 256}, and m can be 1 to indicate AL=8 or 24, or AL=16 or        24.

For the above embodiments, the candidate set of repetition numbers canbe selected from {1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256}. Alternatively, thecandidates can be defined in terms of the scaled Rmax, where Rmax is themaximum number of repetitions configured for CSS or USS. In a furtherembodiment, the Rmax is the maximum number of PDCCH repetitionsconfigured for Type 0 CSS for DL channel quality reporting in connectedmode for CE mode A. The set of scaling factors can be predefined orconfigured by RRC, e.g. {1, ½, ¼, ⅛} or {1, ½, ¼, ⅛, 1/16, 1/32, 1/64,1/128}. In one example, different sets of scaling factors can bedefined/configured for CE modes. In another example, different sets ofscaling factors can be defined for different Rmax, e.g. {1, ½, ¼, ⅛} forsmall Rmax and {1, ¼, ⅛, 1/16} for large Rmax. In another example,scaling factor with value greater than one, that is, possibility toindicate a number of repetitions larger than the reference Rmax may beconfigured. In an further example, scaling factor greater than one maybe configured only if the Rmax corresponds to that of MPDCCH USS for CEmode A.

Regarding the assumption for the AL to be used for the hypotheticalMPDCCH, the following embodiments can be considered. With theseembodiments, UE may not need to report AL for CE mode A.

-   -   Option 1: The AL can be specified in the spec. For example,        AL=24 for eMTC.    -   Option 2: The AL can be determined based on the PRACH coverage        level or CE mode. For example, AL=8 or 16 for CE mode A, while        AL=24 for CE mode B.    -   Option 3: The AL can be determined based on the Rmax for CSS or        USS. For example, AL=8 for Rmax<N1, AL=16 for N1<=Rmax<N2, and        AL=24 for Rmax>=N2, where N1 and N2 can be fixed in spec or        signaled via SIB. Note that with suitable selection of N1 and        N2, we can have only two AL, or only one AL supported for the        measurement report. For example, by setting N1=N2, UE can assume        AL=8 for Rmax<N1, and AL=24 for Rmax>=N1 when determining the        repetition number for MPDCCH.    -   Option 4: The AL to be assumed can be signaled via SIB        signaling. Furthermore, this could be a single value, or defined        as a function of PRACH coverage level or CE mode, or defined as        a function of Rmax configured for CSS or USS, wherein, for the        last option, one or more thresholds to divide the entire range        of Rmax values may be specified.

For the DCI format to be assumed for the measurement, the followingembodiments can be considered.

-   -   In one embodiment, the same DCI format as assumed for quality        report in Msg3 can be used.    -   Alternatively, different DCI formats can be assumed for        different CE modes. For example, DCI format 6-1A and DCI format        6-1B can be assumed for CE mode A and CE mode B, respectively.

Regarding the case where FH is configured for MPDCCH in USS,

-   -   In one embodiment, the measurement report is based on the        estimation across all hopped NBs where the UE monitors the USS        MPDCCH.    -   In another embodiment, the measurement report is based on the        worst or best NB among the hopped NB where the UE monitors the        USS MPDCCH.    -   In yet another embodiment, the measurement over each NB of the        hopped ones is contained in quality report. In other words, the        quality report contains the channel status information for        multiple NBs where the UE monitors the USS MPDCCH.

Triggering Method

In this section, we disclose the possible triggering methods for qualityreport in connected mode using the same definition as in Msg3.

In one embodiment, in connected mode, the DL quality report can becarried in Msg3 which is in response to PDCCH ordered PRACH. For thiscase,

-   -   The reserved bit R in the RAR can be used to indicate whether        the quality report is carried in Msg3 or not.    -   Alternatively, the quality report will be sent if this feature        is enabled (e.g. via RRC signaling), and the RAR schedules a        large enough TBS for Msg3, where UE can fit in the quality        report.    -   In yet another example, if this feature is enabled (e.g. via RRC        signaling), the UE shall report the quality in terms of MPDCCH        repetition number and/or AL when the RAR triggers the CSI report        via CSI request field. The UL grant contained in the RAR can be        updated to include the quality report request field for CE mode        B.

In another embodiment, for aperiodic report carried in PUSCH, thefollowing methods can be considered.

-   -   In one example, if this feature is enabled (e.g. via RRC        signaling), the UE shall report the quality in terms of the        metric defined in Msg3 instead of CQI when aperiodic CSI report        is triggered (via CSI request field in DCI). This can be used in        CE mode A.    -   In one example, the DCI can be extended to include 1 bit        indicator to trigger the transmission of quality report using        what defined in Msg3. This can be used in CE mode B.        -   In a further example, the DCI format is an UL DCI format            (DCI format 6-0A or 6-0B) and the DL channel quality report            is carried by the scheduled PUSCH.        -   In yet another example, the DCI can be extended to include            an additional bit, to indicate whether the legacy CQI report            of the DL quality report using the same definition as in            Msg3 should be used. In this example, whether the UE should            contain any DL quality report would be triggered by the            existing CSI request field in UL grant, and which DL quality            report metric to be used (legacy CQI or the quality report            using the same definition as in Msg3) would be indicated by            the added bit.

Some of the above embodiments can be used in RRC idle mode to triggerthe quality report in Msg3 for eMTC and NB-IoT as well. For example:

-   -   In one example, if EDT is not configured, the reserved bit R in        the RAR can be used to indicate whether the quality report is        carried in Msg3 or not.    -   In another example, the quality report will be sent, if this        feature is enabled (e.g. via MIB or SIB1) and the RAR schedules        a large enough TBS for Msg3, where UE can fit in the quality        report.    -   In yet another example, if this feature is enabled (e.g. via RRC        signaling), the UE shall report the quality in terms of MPDCCH        repetition number and/or AL when the RAR triggers the CSI report        via CSI request field. The UL grant contained in the RAR can be        updated to include the quality report request field for CE mode        B in eMTC and for NB-IoT.

Measurement Reference Resource

In one embodiment, similar to the quality reporting in Msg3 for NB-IoTanchor carrier in Rel-14, the reference resource for the qualitymeasurement may not be defined.

In one embodiment, the reference resource can be defined using examplesdisclosed in IDF AB5725. These methods can be used for quality report inMsg3.

In another embodiment, similar to the definition of reference resourcesfor CSI feedback in Rel-13 eMTC, reference resources for channel qualitymeasurements can be defined. The reference resource can span N BL/CE DLsubframes, where N is a positive integer satisfying N>=1.

-   -   For the design of parameter N,        -   In one example, the parameter N can be predefined. It can be            fixed in spec, or a mapping from N to Rmax can be defined,            e.g. N=Rmax/K, where K can be 1, 2, 4, 8, etc. The parameter            K can be predefined, or depend on Rmax, e.g. K becomes            larger when Rmax increases.        -   In one example, the parameter N can be configured by SIB.        -   In other example, the parameter N can be R{circumflex over            ( )}CSI defined in 36.213, which is given by higher layer            parameter csi-NumRepetitionCE.    -   For set of subframes as reference resources,        -   In one example, the starting subframe of the set of            subframes for reference resource can be defined. For            example, the first subframe can be M subframes before the            first subframe of the search space (e.g. USS), where M can            be non-negative integer such as 0, 2, or 4.        -   In one example, the reference resource can be defined            similar as the CSI reference resource defined for Rel-13            eMTC. Specifically, the reference resource is defined by a            set of BL/CE DL or special SFs where the last SF is SF            n-nCQI_ref,            -   where nCQI_ref>=4,            -   where for wideband CSI reports:                -   The set of BL/CE downlink or special subframes is                    the set of the last ceil

$\left( \frac{N}{N_{{NB},{hop}}^{{ch},{DL}}} \right)$

-   -   -   -   -   subframes before n-nCQI_ref used for MPDCCH                    monitoring by the BL/CE UE in each of the                    narrowbands where the BL/CE UE monitors MPDCCH,                    where N_(NB,hop) ^(ch,DL) is the number of                    narrowbands where the BL/CE UE monitors MPDCCH.

            -   where for subband CSI reports:                -   The set of BL/CE downlink or special subframes is                    the set of the last N subframes used for MPDCCH                    monitoring by the BL/CE UE in the corresponding                    narrowband before n-nCQI_ref.

Regarding frequency resources for the measurement, the NB for CSS or USScan be defined as the frequency domain resources for measurement. Iffrequency hopping is configured for MPDCCH, wideband measurement can bereported where the number of MPDCCH repetitions and/or AL can take intoaccount the channels across the hopped NBs.

Triggering and Reporting Method

In one embodiment, existing UEAssistanceInformation message in UL DCCHcan be used. When eNB request the report, it prepares the report and addin the UEAssistanceInformation message to transmit in the UL-SCH.

In one option, a threshold can be defined which determines when toreport the message. For example, if UE determines that UE cannot decodehypothetical MPDCCH with BLER of x % for N consecutive times in a NB, ittriggers the report (with recommended aggregation level and repetitionlevel) and sends it in UEAssistanceInformation message. The value of xand N can be configured or predefined and can be equal to 1.

If UE determines that UE decodes hypothetical MPDCCH with BLER of equalto or less than 1% for N consecutive times in a NB (or excessiverepetitions are configured), UE can also report the recommended MPDCCHparameters (e.g., aggregation level and repetition levels) in theUEAssistanceInformation message. Example of reporting viaUEAssistanceInformation message.

  UEAssistanceInformation-v1530-IEs ::=     SEQUENCE {    sps-AssistanceInformation-v1530         SEQUENCE {        trafficPatternInfoListSL-v1530          TrafficPatternInfoList-v1530     }       OPTIONAL,    nonCriticalExtension                    UEAssistanceInformation-v16xy-IEs         OPTIONAL }UEAssistanceInformation-v16xy-IEs ::=      SEQUENCE {    mpdcch-QualityReport     SEQUENCE {         aggregationLevel-r16         ENUMERATED {no report, AG1, AG2, AG3},        repetitionLevel-r16       ENUMERATED {R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6,R7, R8}     }         OPTIONAL,     nonCriticalExtension              SEQUENCE { }        OPTIONAL }

In case of frequency hopping or having report for multiple NBs, reportfor each NB can be sent. In the list, identification of NB can beexplicitly indicated or indices (0 . . . [maxAvailNarrowBands-r13-1]) asspecified in TS 36.211 can be used in the list. Example of reporting formultiple NBs via UEAssistanceInformation message.

  UEAssistanceInformation-v1530-IEs ::=     SEQUENCE {    sps-AssistanceInformation-v1530         SEQUENCE {        trafficPatternInfoListSL-v1530          TrafficPatternInfoList-v1530     }         OPTIONAL,    nonCriticalExtension                    UEAssistanceInformation-v16xy-IEs         OPTIONAL }UEAssistanceInformation-v16xy-IEs ::=     SEQUENCE {    mpdccp-QualityReportList-r16          Mpdccp-QualityReportList-r16     OPTIONAL,     nonCriticalExtension              SEQUENCE { }       OPTIONAL } Mpdccp-QualityReportList-r16 ::= SEQUENCE (SIZE (1..maxAvailNarrowBands-r13)) OF Mpdccp- QualityReport-r16Mpdccp-QualityReport-r16::=               SEQUENCE {    aggregationLevel-r16         ENUMERATED {no report, AG1, AG2, AG3},    repetitionLevel-r16      ENUMERATED {21, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, R8}    },

In another embodiment, eNB can also use 1 bit indication to request thereport in RRC message, for example in RRCConnectionSetup,RRCConnectionResume, RRCConnectionReestablishment or RRCReconfigurationmessage. In another option, existing UEInformationRequest message isused. When eNB needs report from a capable UE, it request the reportusing UEInformationRequest message. Then UE sends the report usingUEInformationResponse message.

Example of requesting via UEInformationRequest message.

  UEInformationRequest-v1530-IEs ::= SEQUENCE {    idleModeMeasurementReq-r15  ENUMERATED {true}         OPTIONAL,    -- Need ON     flightPathInfoReq-r15     FlightPathInfoReportConfig-r15      OPTIONAL,    -- Need ON    nonCriticalExtension           UEInformationRequest-v16xy-IEs        OPTIONAL } UEInformationRequest-v16xy-IEs ::= SEQUENCE {    Mpdcch-QualityReortReq-r16      ENUMERATED {true}     OPTIONAL,    -- Need ON     nonCriticalExtension         SEQUENCE {}         OPTIONAL }

Example of reporting via UEInformationResponse message.

  UEInformationResponse-v1530-IEs ::= SEQUENCE {    measResultListIdle-r15     MeasResultListIdle-r15         OPTIONAL,    flightPathInfoReport-r15     FlightPathInfoReport-r15        OPTIONAL,     nonCriticalExtension           UEInformationResponse-v16xy-IEs     OPTIONAL }UEInformationResponse-v16xy-IEs ::= SEQUENCE {    mpdccp-QualityReport-r16    Mpdccp-QualityReport-r16          OPTIONAL,     nonCriticalExtension       SEQUENCE { }           OPTIONAL } Mpdccp-QualityReport-r16::=            SEQUENCE {    aggregationLevel-r16       ENUMERATED {no report, AG1, AG2, AG3},    repetitionLevel-r16   ENUMERATED {R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, R8}    },

In another embodiment, the quality report can be appended to the UL MACSDU or sent separately, for example using a MAC CE. Also same MAC CE canbe used to report the quality in Msg3 is used in connected mode.

FIG. 11 illustrates a flowchart diagram of a method 1100 for enhancedmachine-type communication (eMTC) in a connected mode by a userequipment (UE) that includes the following steps. In step 1110, themethod includes performing a downlink (DL) quality measurement. In step1120, the method includes generating a DL quality report based on the DLquality measurement, wherein a definition of the DL quality reportmatches a definition of quality report in Msg3. In step 1130, the methodalso includes transmitting the DL quality report to a next generationbase station (gNB).

Systems and Implementations

FIG. 1 illustrates an example architecture of a system 100 of a network,in accordance with various embodiments. The following description isprovided for an example system 100 that operates in conjunction with theLTE system standards and 5G or NR system standards as provided by 3GPPtechnical specifications. However, the example embodiments are notlimited in this regard and the described embodiments may apply to othernetworks that benefit from the principles described herein, such asfuture 3GPP systems (e.g., Sixth Generation (6G)) systems, IEEE 802.16protocols (e.g., WMAN, WiMAX, etc.), or the like.

As shown by FIG. 1, the system 100 includes UE 101 a and UE 101 b(collectively referred to as “UEs 101” or “UE 101”). In this example,UEs 101 are illustrated as smartphones (e.g., handheld touchscreenmobile computing devices connectable to one or more cellular networks),but may also comprise any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such asconsumer electronics devices, cellular phones, smartphones, featurephones, tablet computers, wearable computer devices, personal digitalassistants (PDAs), pagers, wireless handsets, desktop computers, laptopcomputers, in-vehicle infotainment (IVI), in-car entertainment (ICE)devices, an Instrument Cluster (IC), head-up display (HUD) devices,onboard diagnostic (OBD) devices, dashtop mobile equipment (DME), mobiledata terminals (MDTs), Electronic Engine Management System (EEMS),electronic/engine control units (ECUs), electronic/engine controlmodules (ECMs), embedded systems, microcontrollers, control modules,engine management systems (EMS), networked or “smart” appliances, MTCdevices, M2M, IoT devices, and/or the like.

In some embodiments, any of the UEs 101 may be IoT UEs, which maycomprise a network access layer designed for low-power IoT applicationsutilizing short-lived UE connections. An IoT UE can utilize technologiessuch as M2M or MTC for exchanging data with an MTC server or device viaa PLMN, ProSe or D2D communication, sensor networks, or IoT networks.The M2M or MTC exchange of data may be a machine-initiated exchange ofdata. An IoT network describes interconnecting IoT UEs, which mayinclude uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices (within theInternet infrastructure), with short-lived connections. The IoT UEs mayexecute background applications (e.g., keep-alive messages, statusupdates, etc.) to facilitate the connections of the IoT network.

The UEs 101 may be configured to connect, for example, communicativelycouple, with an or RAN 110. In embodiments, the RAN 110 may be an NG RANor a 5G RAN, an E-UTRAN, or a legacy RAN, such as a UTRAN or GERAN. Asused herein, the term “NG RAN” or the like may refer to a RAN 110 thatoperates in an NR or 5G system 100, and the term “E-UTRAN” or the likemay refer to a RAN 110 that operates in an LTE or 4G system 100. The UEs101 utilize connections (or channels) 103 and 104, respectively, each ofwhich comprises a physical communications interface or layer (discussedin further detail below).

In this example, the connections 103 and 104 are illustrated as an airinterface to enable communicative coupling, and can be consistent withcellular communications protocols, such as a GSM protocol, a CDMAnetwork protocol, a PTT protocol, a POC protocol, a UMTS protocol, a3GPP LTE protocol, a 5G protocol, a NR protocol, and/or any of the othercommunications protocols discussed herein. In embodiments, the UEs 101may directly exchange communication data via a ProSe interface 105. TheProSe interface 105 may alternatively be referred to as a SL interface105 and may comprise one or more logical channels, including but notlimited to a PSCCH, a PSSCH, a PSDCH, and a PSBCH.

The UE 101 b is shown to be configured to access an AP 106 (alsoreferred to as “WLAN node 106,” “WLAN 106,” “WLAN Termination 106,” “WT106” or the like) via connection 107. The connection 107 can comprise alocal wireless connection, such as a connection consistent with any IEEE802.11 protocol, wherein the AP 106 would comprise a wireless fidelity(Wi-Fi®) router. In this example, the AP 106 is shown to be connected tothe Internet without connecting to the core network of the wirelesssystem (described in further detail below). In various embodiments, theUE 101 b, RAN 110, and AP 106 may be configured to utilize LWA operationand/or LWIP operation. The LWA operation may involve the UE 101 b inRRC_CONNECTED being configured by a RAN node 111 a-b to utilize radioresources of LTE and WLAN. LWIP operation may involve the UE 101 b usingWLAN radio resources (e.g., connection 107) via IPsec protocol tunnelingto authenticate and encrypt packets (e.g., IP packets) sent over theconnection 107. IPsec tunneling may include encapsulating the entiretyof original IP packets and adding a new packet header, therebyprotecting the original header of the IP packets.

The RAN 110 can include one or more AN nodes or RAN nodes 111 a and 111b (collectively referred to as “RAN nodes 111” or “RAN node 111”) thatenable the connections 103 and 104. As used herein, the terms “accessnode,” “access point,” or the like may describe equipment that providesthe radio baseband functions for data and/or voice connectivity betweena network and one or more users. These access nodes can be referred toas BS, gNBs, RAN nodes, eNBs, NodeBs, RSUs, TRxPs or TRPs, and so forth,and can comprise ground stations (e.g., terrestrial access points) orsatellite stations providing coverage within a geographic area (e.g., acell). As used herein, the term “NG RAN node” or the like may refer to aRAN node 111 that operates in an NR or 5G system 100 (for example, agNB), and the term “E-UTRAN node” or the like may refer to a RAN node111 that operates in an LTE or 4G system 100 (e.g., an eNB). Accordingto various embodiments, the RAN nodes 111 may be implemented as one ormore of a dedicated physical device such as a macrocell base station,and/or a low power (LP) base station for providing femtocells, picocellsor other like cells having smaller coverage areas, smaller usercapacity, or higher bandwidth compared to macrocells.

In some embodiments, all or parts of the RAN nodes 111 may beimplemented as one or more software entities running on server computersas part of a virtual network, which may be referred to as a CRAN and/ora virtual baseband unit pool (vBBUP). In these embodiments, the CRAN orvBBUP may implement a RAN function split, such as a PDCP split whereinRRC and PDCP layers are operated by the CRAN/vBBUP and other L2 protocolentities are operated by individual RAN nodes 111; a MAC/PHY splitwherein RRC, PDCP, RLC, and MAC layers are operated by the CRAN/vBBUPand the PHY layer is operated by individual RAN nodes 111; or a “lowerPHY” split wherein RRC, PDCP, RLC, MAC layers and upper portions of thePHY layer are operated by the CRAN/vBBUP and lower portions of the PHYlayer are operated by individual RAN nodes 111. This virtualizedframework allows the freed-up processor cores of the RAN nodes 111 toperform other virtualized applications. In some implementations, anindividual RAN node 111 may represent individual gNB-DUs that areconnected to a gNB-CU via individual F1 interfaces (not shown by FIG.1). In these implementations, the gNB-DUs may include one or more remoteradio heads or RFEMs (see, e.g., FIG. 4), and the gNB-CU may be operatedby a server that is located in the RAN 110 (not shown) or by a serverpool in a similar manner as the CRAN/vBBUP. Additionally oralternatively, one or more of the RAN nodes 111 may be next generationeNBs (ng-eNBs), which are RAN nodes that provide E-UTRA user plane andcontrol plane protocol terminations toward the UEs 101, and areconnected to a 5GC (e.g., CN 320 of FIG. 3) via an NG interface(discussed infra).

In V2X scenarios one or more of the RAN nodes 111 may be or act as RSUs.The term “Road Side Unit” or “RSU” may refer to any transportationinfrastructure entity used for V2X communications. An RSU may beimplemented in or by a suitable RAN node or a stationary (or relativelystationary) UE, where an RSU implemented in or by a UE may be referredto as a “UE-type RSU,” an RSU implemented in or by an eNB may bereferred to as an “eNB-type RSU,” an RSU implemented in or by a gNB maybe referred to as a “gNB-type RSU,” and the like. In one example, an RSUis a computing device coupled with radio frequency circuitry located ona roadside that provides connectivity support to passing vehicle UEs 101(vUEs 101). The RSU may also include internal data storage circuitry tostore intersection map geometry, traffic statistics, media, as well asapplications/software to sense and control ongoing vehicular andpedestrian traffic. The RSU may operate on the 5.9 GHz Direct ShortRange Communications (DSRC) band to provide very low latencycommunications required for high speed events, such as crash avoidance,traffic warnings, and the like. Additionally or alternatively, the RSUmay operate on the cellular V2X band to provide the aforementioned lowlatency communications, as well as other cellular communicationsservices. Additionally or alternatively, the RSU may operate as a Wi-Fihotspot (2.4 GHz band) and/or provide connectivity to one or morecellular networks to provide uplink and downlink communications. Thecomputing device(s) and some or all of the radiofrequency circuitry ofthe RSU may be packaged in a weatherproof enclosure suitable for outdoorinstallation, and may include a network interface controller to providea wired connection (e.g., Ethernet) to a traffic signal controllerand/or a backhaul network.

Any of the RAN nodes 111 can terminate the air interface protocol andcan be the first point of contact for the UEs 101. In some embodiments,any of the RAN nodes 111 can fulfill various logical functions for theRAN 110 including, but not limited to, radio network controller (RNC)functions such as radio bearer management, uplink and downlink dynamicradio resource management and data packet scheduling, and mobilitymanagement.

In embodiments, the UEs 101 can be configured to communicate using OFDMcommunication signals with each other or with any of the RAN nodes 111over a multicarrier communication channel in accordance with variouscommunication techniques, such as, but not limited to, an OFDMAcommunication technique (e.g., for downlink communications) or a SC-FDMAcommunication technique (e.g., for uplink and ProSe or sidelinkcommunications), although the scope of the embodiments is not limited inthis respect. The OFDM signals can comprise a plurality of orthogonalsubcarriers.

In some embodiments, a downlink resource grid can be used for downlinktransmissions from any of the RAN nodes 111 to the UEs 101, while uplinktransmissions can utilize similar techniques. The grid can be atime-frequency grid, called a resource grid or time-frequency resourcegrid, which is the physical resource in the downlink in each slot. Sucha time-frequency plane representation is a common practice for OFDMsystems, which makes it intuitive for radio resource allocation. Eachcolumn and each row of the resource grid corresponds to one OFDM symboland one OFDM subcarrier, respectively. The duration of the resource gridin the time domain corresponds to one slot in a radio frame. Thesmallest time-frequency unit in a resource grid is denoted as a resourceelement. Each resource grid comprises a number of resource blocks, whichdescribe the mapping of certain physical channels to resource elements.Each resource block comprises a collection of resource elements; in thefrequency domain, this may represent the smallest quantity of resourcesthat currently can be allocated. There are several different physicaldownlink channels that are conveyed using such resource blocks.

According to various embodiments, the UEs 101 and the RAN nodes 111communicate data (for example, transmit and receive) data over alicensed medium (also referred to as the “licensed spectrum” and/or the“licensed band”) and an unlicensed shared medium (also referred to asthe “unlicensed spectrum” and/or the “unlicensed band”). The licensedspectrum may include channels that operate in the frequency range ofapproximately 400 MHz to approximately 3.8 GHz, whereas the unlicensedspectrum may include the 5 GHz band.

To operate in the unlicensed spectrum, the UEs 101 and the RAN nodes 111may operate using LAA, eLAA, and/or feLAA mechanisms. In theseimplementations, the UEs 101 and the RAN nodes 111 may perform one ormore known medium-sensing operations and/or carrier-sensing operationsin order to determine whether one or more channels in the unlicensedspectrum is unavailable or otherwise occupied prior to transmitting inthe unlicensed spectrum. The medium/carrier sensing operations may beperformed according to a listen-before-talk (LBT) protocol.

LBT is a mechanism whereby equipment (for example, UEs 101 RAN nodes111, etc.) senses a medium (for example, a channel or carrier frequency)and transmits when the medium is sensed to be idle (or when a specificchannel in the medium is sensed to be unoccupied). The medium sensingoperation may include CCA, which utilizes at least ED to determine thepresence or absence of other signals on a channel in order to determineif a channel is occupied or clear. This LBT mechanism allowscellular/LAA networks to coexist with incumbent systems in theunlicensed spectrum and with other LAA networks. ED may include sensingRF energy across an intended transmission band for a period of time andcomparing the sensed RF energy to a predefined or configured threshold.

Typically, the incumbent systems in the 5 GHz band are WLANs based onIEEE 802.11 technologies. WLAN employs a contention-based channel accessmechanism, called CSMA/CA. Here, when a WLAN node (e.g., a mobilestation (MS) such as UE 101, AP 106, or the like) intends to transmit,the WLAN node may first perform CCA before transmission. Additionally, abackoff mechanism is used to avoid collisions in situations where morethan one WLAN node senses the channel as idle and transmits at the sametime. The backoff mechanism may be a counter that is drawn randomlywithin the CWS, which is increased exponentially upon the occurrence ofcollision and reset to a minimum value when the transmission succeeds.The LBT mechanism designed for LAA is somewhat similar to the CSMA/CA ofWLAN. In some implementations, the LBT procedure for DL or ULtransmission bursts including PDSCH or PUSCH transmissions,respectively, may have an LAA contention window that is variable inlength between X and Y ECCA slots, where X and Y are minimum and maximumvalues for the CWSs for LAA. In one example, the minimum CWS for an LAAtransmission may be 9 microseconds (μs); however, the size of the CWSand a MCOT (for example, a transmission burst) may be based ongovernmental regulatory requirements.

The LAA mechanisms are built upon CA technologies of LTE-Advancedsystems. In CA, each aggregated carrier is referred to as a CC. A CC mayhave a bandwidth of 1.4, 3, 5, 10, 15 or 20 MHz and a maximum of fiveCCs can be aggregated, and therefore, a maximum aggregated bandwidth is100 MHz. In FDD systems, the number of aggregated carriers can bedifferent for DL and UL, where the number of UL CCs is equal to or lowerthan the number of DL component carriers. In some cases, individual CCscan have a different bandwidth than other CCs. In TDD systems, thenumber of CCs as well as the bandwidths of each CC is usually the samefor DL and UL.

CA also comprises individual serving cells to provide individual CCs.The coverage of the serving cells may differ, for example, because CCson different frequency bands will experience different pathloss. Aprimary service cell or PCell may provide a PCC for both UL and DL, andmay handle RRC and NAS related activities. The other serving cells arereferred to as SCells, and each SCell may provide an individual SCC forboth UL and DL. The SCCs may be added and removed as required, whilechanging the PCC may require the UE 101 to undergo a handover. In LAA,eLAA, and feLAA, some or all of the SCells may operate in the unlicensedspectrum (referred to as “LAA SCells”), and the LAA SCells are assistedby a PCell operating in the licensed spectrum. When a UE is configuredwith more than one LAA SCell, the UE may receive UL grants on theconfigured LAA SCells indicating different PUSCH starting positionswithin a same subframe.

The PDSCH carries user data and higher-layer signaling to the UEs 101.The PDCCH carries information about the transport format and resourceallocations related to the PDSCH channel, among other things. It mayalso inform the UEs 101 about the transport format, resource allocation,and HARQ information related to the uplink shared channel. Typically,downlink scheduling (assigning control and shared channel resourceblocks to the UE 101 b within a cell) may be performed at any of the RANnodes 111 based on channel quality information fed back from any of theUEs 101. The downlink resource assignment information may be sent on thePDCCH used for (e.g., assigned to) each of the UEs 101.

The PDCCH uses CCEs to convey the control information. Before beingmapped to resource elements, the PDCCH complex-valued symbols may firstbe organized into quadruplets, which may then be permuted using asub-block interleaver for rate matching. Each PDCCH may be transmittedusing one or more of these CCEs, where each CCE may correspond to ninesets of four physical resource elements known as REGs. Four QuadraturePhase Shift Keying (QPSK) symbols may be mapped to each REG. The PDCCHcan be transmitted using one or more CCEs, depending on the size of theDCI and the channel condition. There can be four or more different PDCCHformats defined in LTE with different numbers of CCEs (e.g., aggregationlevel, L=1, 2, 4, or 8).

Some embodiments may use concepts for resource allocation for controlchannel information that are an extension of the above-describedconcepts. For example, some embodiments may utilize an EPDCCH that usesPDSCH resources for control information transmission. The EPDCCH may betransmitted using one or more ECCEs. Similar to above, each ECCE maycorrespond to nine sets of four physical resource elements known as anEREGs. An ECCE may have other numbers of EREGs in some situations.

The RAN nodes 111 may be configured to communicate with one another viainterface 112. In embodiments where the system 100 is an LTE system(e.g., when CN 120 is an EPC 220 as in FIG. 2), the interface 112 may bean X2 interface 112. The X2 interface may be defined between two or moreRAN nodes 111 (e.g., two or more eNBs and the like) that connect to EPC120, and/or between two eNBs connecting to EPC 120. In someimplementations, the X2 interface may include an X2 user plane interface(X2-U) and an X2 control plane interface (X2-C). The X2-U may provideflow control mechanisms for user data packets transferred over the X2interface, and may be used to communicate information about the deliveryof user data between eNBs. For example, the X2-U may provide specificsequence number information for user data transferred from a MeNB to anSeNB; information about successful in sequence delivery of PDCP PDUs toa UE 101 from an SeNB for user data; information of PDCP PDUs that werenot delivered to a UE 101; information about a current minimum desiredbuffer size at the SeNB for transmitting to the UE user data; and thelike. The X2-C may provide intra-LTE access mobility functionality,including context transfers from source to target eNBs, user planetransport control, etc.; load management functionality; as well asinter-cell interference coordination functionality.

In embodiments where the system 100 is a 5G or NR system (e.g., when CN120 is an 5GC 320 as in FIG. 3), the interface 112 may be an Xninterface 112. The Xn interface is defined between two or more RAN nodes111 (e.g., two or more gNBs and the like) that connect to 5GC 120,between a RAN node 111 (e.g., a gNB) connecting to 5GC 120 and an eNB,and/or between two eNBs connecting to 5GC 120. In some implementations,the Xn interface may include an Xn user plane (Xn-U) interface and an Xncontrol plane (Xn-C) interface. The Xn-U may provide non-guaranteeddelivery of user plane PDUs and support/provide data forwarding and flowcontrol functionality. The Xn-C may provide management and errorhandling functionality, functionality to manage the Xn-C interface;mobility support for UE 101 in a connected mode (e.g., CM-CONNECTED)including functionality to manage the UE mobility for connected modebetween one or more RAN nodes 111. The mobility support may includecontext transfer from an old (source) serving RAN node 111 to new(target) serving RAN node 111; and control of user plane tunnels betweenold (source) serving RAN node 111 to new (target) serving RAN node 111.A protocol stack of the Xn-U may include a transport network layer builton Internet Protocol (IP) transport layer, and a GTP-U layer on top of aUDP and/or IP layer(s) to carry user plane PDUs. The Xn-C protocol stackmay include an application layer signaling protocol (referred to as XnApplication Protocol (Xn-AP)) and a transport network layer that isbuilt on SCTP. The SCTP may be on top of an IP layer, and may providethe guaranteed delivery of application layer messages. In the transportIP layer, point-to-point transmission is used to deliver the signalingPDUs. In other implementations, the Xn-U protocol stack and/or the Xn-Cprotocol stack may be same or similar to the user plane and/or controlplane protocol stack(s) shown and described herein.

The RAN 110 is shown to be communicatively coupled to a core network-inthis embodiment, core network (CN) 120. The CN 120 may comprise aplurality of network elements 122, which are configured to offer variousdata and telecommunications services to customers/subscribers (e.g.,users of UEs 101) who are connected to the CN 120 via the RAN 110. Thecomponents of the CN 120 may be implemented in one physical node orseparate physical nodes including components to read and executeinstructions from a machine-readable or computer-readable medium (e.g.,a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium). In some embodiments,NFV may be utilized to virtualize any or all of the above-describednetwork node functions via executable instructions stored in one or morecomputer-readable storage mediums (described in further detail below). Alogical instantiation of the CN 120 may be referred to as a networkslice, and a logical instantiation of a portion of the CN 120 may bereferred to as a network sub-slice. NFV architectures andinfrastructures may be used to virtualize one or more network functions,alternatively performed by proprietary hardware, onto physical resourcescomprising a combination of industry-standard server hardware, storagehardware, or switches. In other words, NFV systems can be used toexecute virtual or reconfigurable implementations of one or more EPCcomponents/functions.

Generally, the application server 130 may be an element offeringapplications that use IP bearer resources with the core network (e.g.,UMTS PS domain, LTE PS data services, etc.). The application server 130can also be configured to support one or more communication services(e.g., VoIP sessions, PTT sessions, group communication sessions, socialnetworking services, etc.) for the UEs 101 via the EPC 120.

In embodiments, the CN 120 may be a 5GC (referred to as “5GC 120” or thelike), and the RAN 110 may be connected with the CN 120 via an NGinterface 113. In embodiments, the NG interface 113 may be split intotwo parts, an NG user plane (NG-U) interface 114, which carries trafficdata between the RAN nodes 111 and a UPF, and the S1 control plane(NG-C) interface 115, which is a signaling interface between the RANnodes 111 and AMFs. Embodiments where the CN 120 is a 5GC 120 arediscussed in more detail with regard to FIG. 3.

In embodiments, the CN 120 may be a 5G CN (referred to as “5GC 120” orthe like), while in other embodiments, the CN 120 may be an EPC). WhereCN 120 is an EPC (referred to as “EPC 120” or the like), the RAN 110 maybe connected with the CN 120 via an S1 interface 113. In embodiments,the S1 interface 113 may be split into two parts, an S1 user plane(S1-U) interface 114, which carries traffic data between the RAN nodes111 and the S-GW, and the S1-MME interface 115, which is a signalinginterface between the RAN nodes 111 and MMEs. An example architecturewherein the CN 120 is an EPC 120 is shown by FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example architecture of a system 200 including afirst CN 220, in accordance with various embodiments. In this example,system 200 may implement the LTE standard wherein the CN 220 is an EPC220 that corresponds with CN 120 of FIG. 1. Additionally, the UE 201 maybe the same or similar as the UEs 101 of FIG. 1, and the E-UTRAN 210 maybe a RAN that is the same or similar to the RAN 110 of FIG. 1, and whichmay include RAN nodes 111 discussed previously. The CN 220 may compriseMMEs 221, an S-GW 222, a P-GW 223, a HSS 224, and a SGSN 225.

The MMEs 221 may be similar in function to the control plane of legacySGSN, and may implement MM functions to keep track of the currentlocation of a UE 201. The MMEs 221 may perform various MM procedures tomanage mobility aspects in access such as gateway selection and trackingarea list management. MM (also referred to as “EPS MM” or “EMM” inE-UTRAN systems) may refer to all applicable procedures, methods, datastorage, etc. that are used to maintain knowledge about a presentlocation of the UE 201, provide user identity confidentiality, and/orperform other like services to users/subscribers. Each UE 201 and theMME 221 may include an MM or EMM sublayer, and an MM context may beestablished in the UE 201 and the MME 221 when an attach procedure issuccessfully completed. The MM context may be a data structure ordatabase object that stores MM-related information of the UE 201. TheMMEs 221 may be coupled with the HSS 224 via an S6a reference point,coupled with the SGSN 225 via an S3 reference point, and coupled withthe S-GW 222 via an S11 reference point.

The SGSN 225 may be a node that serves the UE 201 by tracking thelocation of an individual UE 201 and performing security functions. Inaddition, the SGSN 225 may perform Inter-EPC node signaling for mobilitybetween 2G/3G and E-UTRAN 3GPP access networks; PDN and S-GW selectionas specified by the MMEs 221; handling of UE 201 time zone functions asspecified by the MMEs 221; and MME selection for handovers to E-UTRAN3GPP access network. The S3 reference point between the MMEs 221 and theSGSN 225 may enable user and bearer information exchange for inter-3GPPaccess network mobility in idle and/or active states.

The HSS 224 may comprise a database for network users, includingsubscription-related information to support the network entities'handling of communication sessions. The EPC 220 may comprise one orseveral HSSs 224, depending on the number of mobile subscribers, on thecapacity of the equipment, on the organization of the network, etc. Forexample, the HSS 224 can provide support for routing/roaming,authentication, authorization, naming/addressing resolution, locationdependencies, etc. An S6a reference point between the HSS 224 and theMMEs 221 may enable transfer of subscription and authentication data forauthenticating/authorizing user access to the EPC 220 between HSS 224and the MMEs 221.

The S-GW 222 may terminate the S1 interface 113 (“S1-U” in FIG. 2)toward the RAN 210, and routes data packets between the RAN 210 and theEPC 220. In addition, the S-GW 222 may be a local mobility anchor pointfor inter-RAN node handovers and also may provide an anchor forinter-3GPP mobility. Other responsibilities may include lawfulintercept, charging, and some policy enforcement. The S11 referencepoint between the S-GW 222 and the MMEs 221 may provide a control planebetween the MMEs 221 and the S-GW 222. The S-GW 222 may be coupled withthe P-GW 223 via an S5 reference point.

The P-GW 223 may terminate an SGi interface toward a PDN 230. The P-GW223 may route data packets between the EPC 220 and external networkssuch as a network including the application server 130 (alternativelyreferred to as an “AF”) via an IP interface 125 (see e.g., FIG. 1). Inembodiments, the P-GW 223 may be communicatively coupled to anapplication server (application server 130 of FIG. 1 or PDN 230 in FIG.2) via an IP communications interface 125 (see, e.g., FIG. 1). The S5reference point between the P-GW 223 and the S-GW 222 may provide userplane tunneling and tunnel management between the P-GW 223 and the S-GW222. The S5 reference point may also be used for S-GW 222 relocation dueto UE 201 mobility and if the S-GW 222 needs to connect to anon-collocated P-GW 223 for the required PDN connectivity. The P-GW 223may further include a node for policy enforcement and charging datacollection (e.g., PCEF (not shown)). Additionally, the SGi referencepoint between the P-GW 223 and the packet data network (PDN) 230 may bean operator external public, a private PDN, or an intra operator packetdata network, for example, for provision of IMS services. The P-GW 223may be coupled with a PCRF 226 via a Gx reference point.

PCRF 226 is the policy and charging control element of the EPC 220. In anon-roaming scenario, there may be a single PCRF 226 in the Home PublicLand Mobile Network (HPLMN) associated with a UE 201's Internet ProtocolConnectivity Access Network (IP-CAN) session. In a roaming scenario withlocal breakout of traffic, there may be two PCRFs associated with a UE201's IP-CAN session, a Home PCRF (H-PCRF) within an HPLMN and a VisitedPCRF (V-PCRF) within a Visited Public Land Mobile Network (VPLMN). ThePCRF 226 may be communicatively coupled to the application server 230via the P-GW 223. The application server 230 may signal the PCRF 226 toindicate a new service flow and select the appropriate QoS and chargingparameters. The PCRF 226 may provision this rule into a PCEF (not shown)with the appropriate TFT and QCI, which commences the QoS and chargingas specified by the application server 230. The Gx reference pointbetween the PCRF 226 and the P-GW 223 may allow for the transfer of QoSpolicy and charging rules from the PCRF 226 to PCEF in the P-GW 223. AnRx reference point may reside between the PDN 230 (or “AF 230”) and thePCRF 226.

FIG. 3 illustrates an architecture of a system 300 including a second CN320 in accordance with various embodiments. The system 300 is shown toinclude a UE 301, which may be the same or similar to the UEs 101 and UE201 discussed previously; a (R)AN 310, which may be the same or similarto the RAN 110 and RAN 210 discussed previously, and which may includeRAN nodes 111 discussed previously; and a DN 303, which may be, forexample, operator services, Internet access or 3rd party services; and a5GC 320. The 5GC 320 may include an AUSF 322; an AMF 321; a SMF 324; aNEF 323; a PCF 326; a NRF 325; a UDM 327; an AF 328; a UPF 302; and aNSSF 329.

The UPF 302 may act as an anchor point for intra-RAT and inter-RATmobility, an external PDU session point of interconnect to DN 303, and abranching point to support multi-homed PDU session. The UPF 302 may alsoperform packet routing and forwarding, perform packet inspection,enforce the user plane part of policy rules, lawfully intercept packets(UP collection), perform traffic usage reporting, perform QoS handlingfor a user plane (e.g., packet filtering, gating, UL/DL rateenforcement), perform Uplink Traffic verification (e.g., SDF to QoS flowmapping), transport level packet marking in the uplink and downlink, andperform downlink packet buffering and downlink data notificationtriggering. UPF 302 may include an uplink classifier to support routingtraffic flows to a data network. The DN 303 may represent variousnetwork operator services, Internet access, or third party services. DN303 may include, or be similar to, application server 130 discussedpreviously. The UPF 302 may interact with the SMF 324 via an N4reference point between the SMF 324 and the UPF 302.

The AUSF 322 may store data for authentication of UE 301 and handleauthentication-related functionality. The AUSF 322 may facilitate acommon authentication framework for various access types. The AUSF 322may communicate with the AMF 321 via an N12 reference point between theAMF 321 and the AUSF 322; and may communicate with the UDM 327 via anN13 reference point between the UDM 327 and the AUSF 322. Additionally,the AUSF 322 may exhibit an Nausf service-based interface.

The AMF 321 may be responsible for registration management (e.g., forregistering UE 301, etc.), connection management, reachabilitymanagement, mobility management, and lawful interception of AMF-relatedevents, and access authentication and authorization. The AMF 321 may bea termination point for the an N11 reference point between the AMF 321and the SMF 324. The AMF 321 may provide transport for SM messagesbetween the UE 301 and the SMF 324, and act as a transparent proxy forrouting SM messages. AMF 321 may also provide transport for SMS messagesbetween UE 301 and an SMSF (not shown by FIG. 3). AMF 321 may act asSEAF, which may include interaction with the AUSF 322 and the UE 301,receipt of an intermediate key that was established as a result of theUE 301 authentication process. Where USIM based authentication is used,the AMF 321 may retrieve the security material from the AUSF 322. AMF321 may also include a SCM function, which receives a key from the SEAthat it uses to derive access-network specific keys. Furthermore, AMF321 may be a termination point of a RAN CP interface, which may includeor be an N2 reference point between the (R)AN 310 and the AMF 321; andthe AMF 321 may be a termination point of NAS (N1) signalling, andperform NAS ciphering and integrity protection.

AMF 321 may also support NAS signalling with a UE 301 over an N3 IWFinterface. The N3IWF may be used to provide access to untrustedentities. N3IWF may be a termination point for the N2 interface betweenthe (R)AN 310 and the AMF 321 for the control plane, and may be atermination point for the N3 reference point between the (R)AN 310 andthe UPF 302 for the user plane. As such, the AMF 321 may handle N2signalling from the SMF 324 and the AMF 321 for PDU sessions and QoS,encapsulate/de-encapsulate packets for IPSec and N3 tunnelling, mark N3user-plane packets in the uplink, and enforce QoS corresponding to N3packet marking taking into account QoS requirements associated with suchmarking received over N2. N3IWF may also relay uplink and downlinkcontrol-plane NAS signalling between the UE 301 and AMF 321 via an N1reference point between the UE 301 and the AMF 321, and relay uplink anddownlink user-plane packets between the UE 301 and UPF 302. The N3IWFalso provides mechanisms for IPsec tunnel establishment with the UE 301.The AMF 321 may exhibit an Namf service-based interface, and may be atermination point for an N14 reference point between two AMFs 321 and anN17 reference point between the AMF 321 and a 5G-EIR (not shown by FIG.3).

The UE 301 may need to register with the AMF 321 in order to receivenetwork services. RM is used to register or deregister the UE 301 withthe network (e.g., AMF 321), and establish a UE context in the network(e.g., AMF 321). The UE 301 may operate in an RM-REGISTERED state or anRM-DEREGISTERED state. In the RM-DEREGISTERED state, the UE 301 is notregistered with the network, and the UE context in AMF 321 holds novalid location or routing information for the UE 301 so the UE 301 isnot reachable by the AMF 321. In the RM-REGISTERED state, the UE 301 isregistered with the network, and the UE context in AMF 321 may hold avalid location or routing information for the UE 301 so the UE 301 isreachable by the AMF 321. In the RM-REGISTERED state, the UE 301 mayperform mobility Registration Update procedures, perform periodicRegistration Update procedures triggered by expiration of the periodicupdate timer (e.g., to notify the network that the UE 301 is stillactive), and perform a Registration Update procedure to update UEcapability information or to re-negotiate protocol parameters with thenetwork, among others.

The AMF 321 may store one or more RM contexts for the UE 301, where eachRM context is associated with a specific access to the network. The RMcontext may be a data structure, database object, etc. that indicates orstores, inter alia, a registration state per access type and theperiodic update timer. The AMF 321 may also store a 5GC MM context thatmay be the same or similar to the (E)MM context discussed previously. Invarious embodiments, the AMF 321 may store a CE mode B Restrictionparameter of the UE 301 in an associated MM context or RM context. TheAMF 321 may also derive the value, when needed, from the UE's usagesetting parameter already stored in the UE context (and/or MM/RMcontext).

CM may be used to establish and release a signaling connection betweenthe UE 301 and the AMF 321 over the N1 interface. The signalingconnection is used to enable NAS signaling exchange between the UE 301and the CN 320, and comprises both the signaling connection between theUE and the AN (e.g., RRC connection or UE-N3IWF connection for non-3GPPaccess) and the N2 connection for the UE 301 between the AN (e.g., RAN310) and the AMF 321. The UE 301 may operate in one of two CM states,CM-IDLE mode or CM-CONNECTED mode. When the UE 301 is operating in theCM-IDLE state/mode, the UE 301 may have no NAS signaling connectionestablished with the AMF 321 over the N1 interface, and there may be(R)AN 310 signaling connection (e.g., N2 and/or N3 connections) for theUE 301. When the UE 301 is operating in the CM-CONNECTED state/mode, theUE 301 may have an established NAS signaling connection with the AMF 321over the N1 interface, and there may be a (R)AN 310 signaling connection(e.g., N2 and/or N3 connections) for the UE 301. Establishment of an N2connection between the (R)AN 310 and the AMF 321 may cause the UE 301 totransition from CM-IDLE mode to CM-CONNECTED mode, and the UE 301 maytransition from the CM-CONNECTED mode to the CM-IDLE mode when N2signaling between the (R)AN 310 and the AMF 321 is released.

The SMF 324 may be responsible for SM (e.g., session establishment,modify and release, including tunnel maintain between UPF and AN node);UE IP address allocation and management (including optionalauthorization); selection and control of UP function; configuringtraffic steering at UPF to route traffic to proper destination;termination of interfaces toward policy control functions; controllingpart of policy enforcement and QoS; lawful intercept (for SM events andinterface to LI system); termination of SM parts of NAS messages;downlink data notification; initiating AN specific SM information, sentvia AMF over N2 to AN; and determining SSC mode of a session. SM mayrefer to management of a PDU session, and a PDU session or “session” mayrefer to a PDU connectivity service that provides or enables theexchange of PDUs between a UE 301 and a data network (DN) 303 identifiedby a Data Network Name (DNN). PDU sessions may be established upon UE301 request, modified upon UE 301 and 5GC 320 request, and released uponUE 301 and 5GC 320 request using NAS SM signaling exchanged over the N1reference point between the UE 301 and the SMF 324. Upon request from anapplication server, the 5GC 320 may trigger a specific application inthe UE 301. In response to receipt of the trigger message, the UE 301may pass the trigger message (or relevant parts/information of thetrigger message) to one or more identified applications in the UE 301.The identified application(s) in the UE 301 may establish a PDU sessionto a specific DNN. The SMF 324 may check whether the UE 301 requests arecompliant with user subscription information associated with the UE 301.In this regard, the SMF 324 may retrieve and/or request to receiveupdate notifications on SMF 324 level subscription data from the UDM327.

The SMF 324 may include the following roaming functionality: handlinglocal enforcement to apply QoS SLAs (VPLMN); charging data collectionand charging interface (VPLMN); lawful intercept (in VPLMN for SM eventsand interface to LI system); and support for interaction with externalDN for transport of signalling for PDU sessionauthorization/authentication by external DN. An N16 reference pointbetween two SMFs 324 may be included in the system 300, which may bebetween another SMF 324 in a visited network and the SMF 324 in the homenetwork in roaming scenarios. Additionally, the SMF 324 may exhibit theNsmf service-based interface.

The NEF 323 may provide means for securely exposing the services andcapabilities provided by 3GPP network functions for third party,internal exposure/re-exposure, Application Functions (e.g., AF 328),edge computing or fog computing systems, etc. In such embodiments, theNEF 323 may authenticate, authorize, and/or throttle the AFs. NEF 323may also translate information exchanged with the AF 328 and informationexchanged with internal network functions. For example, the NEF 323 maytranslate between an AF-Service-Identifier and an internal 5GCinformation. NEF 323 may also receive information from other networkfunctions (NFs) based on exposed capabilities of other networkfunctions. This information may be stored at the NEF 323 as structureddata, or at a data storage NF using standardized interfaces. The storedinformation can then be re-exposed by the NEF 323 to other NFs and AFs,and/or used for other purposes such as analytics. Additionally, the NEF323 may exhibit an Nnef service-based interface.

The NRF 325 may support service discovery functions, receive NFdiscovery requests from NF instances, and provide the information of thediscovered NF instances to the NF instances. NRF 325 also maintainsinformation of available NF instances and their supported services. Asused herein, the terms “instantiate,” “instantiation,” and the like mayrefer to the creation of an instance, and an “instance” may refer to aconcrete occurrence of an object, which may occur, for example, duringexecution of program code. Additionally, the NRF 325 may exhibit theNnrf service-based interface.

The PCF 326 may provide policy rules to control plane function(s) toenforce them, and may also support unified policy framework to governnetwork behaviour. The PCF 326 may also implement an FE to accesssubscription information relevant for policy decisions in a UDR of theUDM 327. The PCF 326 may communicate with the AMF 321 via an N15reference point between the PCF 326 and the AMF 321, which may include aPCF 326 in a visited network and the AMF 321 in case of roamingscenarios. The PCF 326 may communicate with the AF 328 via an N5reference point between the PCF 326 and the AF 328; and with the SMF 324via an N7 reference point between the PCF 326 and the SMF 324. Thesystem 300 and/or CN 320 may also include an N24 reference point betweenthe PCF 326 (in the home network) and a PCF 326 in a visited network.Additionally, the PCF 326 may exhibit an Npcf service-based interface.

The UDM 327 may handle subscription-related information to support thenetwork entities' handling of communication sessions, and may storesubscription data of UE 301. For example, subscription data may becommunicated between the UDM 327 and the AMF 321 via an N8 referencepoint between the UDM 327 and the AMF. The UDM 327 may include twoparts, an application FE and a UDR (the FE and UDR are not shown by FIG.3). The UDR may store subscription data and policy data for the UDM 327and the PCF 326, and/or structured data for exposure and applicationdata (including PFDs for application detection, application requestinformation for multiple UEs 301) for the NEF 323. The Nudrservice-based interface may be exhibited by the UDR 221 to allow the UDM327, PCF 326, and NEF 323 to access a particular set of the stored data,as well as to read, update (e.g., add, modify), delete, and subscribe tonotification of relevant data changes in the UDR. The UDM may include aUDM-FE, which is in charge of processing credentials, locationmanagement, subscription management and so on. Several different frontends may serve the same user in different transactions. The UDM-FEaccesses subscription information stored in the UDR and performsauthentication credential processing, user identification handling,access authorization, registration/mobility management, and subscriptionmanagement. The UDR may interact with the SMF 324 via an N10 referencepoint between the UDM 327 and the SMF 324. UDM 327 may also support SMSmanagement, wherein an SMS-FE implements the similar application logicas discussed previously. Additionally, the UDM 327 may exhibit the Nudmservice-based interface.

The AF 328 may provide application influence on traffic routing, provideaccess to the NCE, and interact with the policy framework for policycontrol. The NCE may be a mechanism that allows the 5GC 320 and AF 328to provide information to each other via NEF 323, which may be used foredge computing implementations. In such implementations, the networkoperator and third party services may be hosted close to the UE 301access point of attachment to achieve an efficient service deliverythrough the reduced end-to-end latency and load on the transportnetwork. For edge computing implementations, the 5GC may select a UPF302 close to the UE 301 and execute traffic steering from the UPF 302 toDN 303 via the N6 interface. This may be based on the UE subscriptiondata, UE location, and information provided by the AF 328. In this way,the AF 328 may influence UPF (re)selection and traffic routing. Based onoperator deployment, when AF 328 is considered to be a trusted entity,the network operator may permit AF 328 to interact directly withrelevant NFs. Additionally, the AF 328 may exhibit an Naf service-basedinterface.

The NSSF 329 may select a set of network slice instances serving the UE301. The NSSF 329 may also determine allowed NSSAI and the mapping tothe subscribed S-NSSAIs, if needed. The NSSF 329 may also determine theAMF set to be used to serve the UE 301, or a list of candidate AMF(s)321 based on a suitable configuration and possibly by querying the NRF325. The selection of a set of network slice instances for the UE 301may be triggered by the AMF 321 with which the UE 301 is registered byinteracting with the NSSF 329, which may lead to a change of AMF 321.The NSSF 329 may interact with the AMF 321 via an N22 reference pointbetween AMF 321 and NSSF 329; and may communicate with another NSSF 329in a visited network via an N31 reference point (not shown by FIG. 3).Additionally, the NSSF 329 may exhibit an Nnssf service-based interface.

As discussed previously, the CN 320 may include an SMSF, which may beresponsible for SMS subscription checking and verification, and relayingSM messages to/from the UE 301 to/from other entities, such as anSMS-GMSC/IWMSC/SMS-router. The SMS may also interact with AMF 321 andUDM 327 for a notification procedure that the UE 301 is available forSMS transfer (e.g., set a UE not reachable flag, and notifying UDM 327when UE 301 is available for SMS).

The CN 120 may also include other elements that are not shown by FIG. 3,such as a Data Storage system/architecture, a 5G-EIR, a SEPP, and thelike. The Data Storage system may include a SDSF, an UDSF, and/or thelike. Any NF may store and retrieve unstructured data into/from the UDSF(e.g., UE contexts), via N18 reference point between any NF and the UDSF(not shown by FIG. 3). Individual NFs may share a UDSF for storing theirrespective unstructured data or individual NFs may each have their ownUDSF located at or near the individual NFs. Additionally, the UDSF mayexhibit an Nudsf service-based interface (not shown by FIG. 3). The5G-EIR may be an NF that checks the status of PEI for determiningwhether particular equipment/entities are blacklisted from the network;and the SEPP may be a non-transparent proxy that performs topologyhiding, message filtering, and policing on inter-PLMN control planeinterfaces.

Additionally, there may be many more reference points and/orservice-based interfaces between the NF services in the NFs; however,these interfaces and reference points have been omitted from FIG. 3 forclarity. In one example, the CN 320 may include an Nx interface, whichis an inter-CN interface between the MME (e.g., MME 221) and the AMF 321in order to enable interworking between CN 320 and CN 220. Other exampleinterfaces/reference points may include an N5g-EIR service-basedinterface exhibited by a 5G-EIR, an N27 reference point between the NRFin the visited network and the NRF in the home network; and an N31reference point between the NSSF in the visited network and the NSSF inthe home network.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of infrastructure equipment 400 inaccordance with various embodiments. The infrastructure equipment 400(or “system 400”) may be implemented as a base station, radio head, RANnode such as the RAN nodes 111 and/or AP 106 shown and describedpreviously, application server(s) 130, and/or any other element/devicediscussed herein. In other examples, the system 400 could be implementedin or by a UE.

The system 400 includes application circuitry 405, baseband circuitry410, one or more radio front end modules (RFEMs) 415, memory circuitry420, power management integrated circuitry (PMIC) 425, power teecircuitry 430, network controller circuitry 435, network interfaceconnector 440, satellite positioning circuitry 445, and user interface450. In some embodiments, the device 400 may include additional elementssuch as, for example, memory/storage, display, camera, sensor, orinput/output (I/O) interface. In other embodiments, the componentsdescribed below may be included in more than one device. For example,said circuitries may be separately included in more than one device forCRAN, vBBU, or other like implementations.

Application circuitry 405 includes circuitry such as, but not limited toone or more processors (or processor cores), cache memory, and one ormore of low drop-out voltage regulators (LDOs), interrupt controllers,serial interfaces such as SPI, I²C or universal programmable serialinterface module, real time clock (RTC), timer-counters includinginterval and watchdog timers, general purpose input/output (I/O or IO),memory card controllers such as Secure Digital (SD) MultiMediaCard (MMC)or similar, Universal Serial Bus (USB) interfaces, Mobile IndustryProcessor Interface (MIPI) interfaces and Joint Test Access Group (JTAG)test access ports. The processors (or cores) of the applicationcircuitry 405 may be coupled with or may include memory/storage elementsand may be configured to execute instructions stored in thememory/storage to enable various applications or operating systems torun on the system 400. In some implementations, the memory/storageelements may be on-chip memory circuitry, which may include any suitablevolatile and/or non-volatile memory, such as DRAM, SRAM, EPROM, EEPROM,Flash memory, solid-state memory, and/or any other type of memory devicetechnology, such as those discussed herein.

The processor(s) of application circuitry 405 may include, for example,one or more processor cores (CPUs), one or more application processors,one or more graphics processing units (GPUs), one or more reducedinstruction set computing (RISC) processors, one or more Acorn RISCMachine (ARM) processors, one or more complex instruction set computing(CISC) processors, one or more digital signal processors (DSP), one ormore FPGAs, one or more PLDs, one or more ASICs, one or moremicroprocessors or controllers, or any suitable combination thereof. Insome embodiments, the application circuitry 405 may comprise, or may be,a special-purpose processor/controller to operate according to thevarious embodiments herein. As examples, the processor(s) of applicationcircuitry 405 may include one or more Intel Pentium®, Core®, or Xeon®processor(s); Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) Ryzen® processor(s),Accelerated Processing Units (APUs), or Epyc® processors; ARM-basedprocessor(s) licensed from ARM Holdings, Ltd. such as the ARM Cortex-Afamily of processors and the ThunderX2® provided by Cavium™, Inc.; aMIPS-based design from MIPS Technologies, Inc. such as MIPS WarriorP-class processors; and/or the like. In some embodiments, the system 400may not utilize application circuitry 405, and instead may include aspecial-purpose processor/controller to process IP data received from anEPC or 5GC, for example.

In some implementations, the application circuitry 405 may include oneor more hardware accelerators, which may be microprocessors,programmable processing devices, or the like. The one or more hardwareaccelerators may include, for example, computer vision (CV) and/or deeplearning (DL) accelerators. As examples, the programmable processingdevices may be one or more a field-programmable devices (FPDs) such asfield-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) and the like; programmable logicdevices (PLDs) such as complex PLDs (CPLDs), high-capacity PLDs(HCPLDs), and the like; ASICs such as structured ASICs and the like;programmable SoCs (PSoCs); and the like. In such implementations, thecircuitry of application circuitry 405 may comprise logic blocks orlogic fabric, and other interconnected resources that may be programmedto perform various functions, such as the procedures, methods,functions, etc. of the various embodiments discussed herein. In suchembodiments, the circuitry of application circuitry 405 may includememory cells (e.g., erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM),electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flashmemory, static memory (e.g., static random access memory (SRAM),anti-fuses, etc.)) used to store logic blocks, logic fabric, data, etc.in look-up-tables (LUTs) and the like.

The baseband circuitry 410 may be implemented, for example, as asolder-down substrate including one or more integrated circuits, asingle packaged integrated circuit soldered to a main circuit board or amulti-chip module containing two or more integrated circuits. Thevarious hardware electronic elements of baseband circuitry 410 arediscussed infra with regard to FIG. 6.

User interface circuitry 450 may include one or more user interfacesdesigned to enable user interaction with the system 400 or peripheralcomponent interfaces designed to enable peripheral component interactionwith the system 400. User interfaces may include, but are not limitedto, one or more physical or virtual buttons (e.g., a reset button), oneor more indicators (e.g., light emitting diodes (LEDs)), a physicalkeyboard or keypad, a mouse, a touchpad, a touchscreen, speakers orother audio emitting devices, microphones, a printer, a scanner, aheadset, a display screen or display device, etc. Peripheral componentinterfaces may include, but are not limited to, a nonvolatile memoryport, a universal serial bus (USB) port, an audio jack, a power supplyinterface, etc.

The radio front end modules (RFEMs) 415 may comprise a millimeter wave(mmWave) RFEM and one or more sub-mmWave radio frequency integratedcircuits (RFICs). In some implementations, the one or more sub-mmWaveRFICs may be physically separated from the mmWave RFEM. The RFICs mayinclude connections to one or more antennas or antenna arrays (see e.g.,antenna array 611 of FIG. 6 infra), and the RFEM may be connected tomultiple antennas. In alternative implementations, both mmWave andsub-mmWave radio functions may be implemented in the same physical RFEM415, which incorporates both mmWave antennas and sub-mmWave.

The memory circuitry 420 may include one or more of volatile memoryincluding dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and/or synchronous dynamicrandom access memory (SDRAM), and nonvolatile memory (NVM) includinghigh-speed electrically erasable memory (commonly referred to as Flashmemory), phase change random access memory (PRAM), magnetoresistiverandom access memory (MRAM), etc., and may incorporate thethree-dimensional (3D) cross-point (XPOINT) memories from Intel® andMicron®. Memory circuitry 420 may be implemented as one or more ofsolder down packaged integrated circuits, socketed memory modules andplug-in memory cards.

The PMIC 425 may include voltage regulators, surge protectors, poweralarm detection circuitry, and one or more backup power sources such asa battery or capacitor. The power alarm detection circuitry may detectone or more of brown out (under-voltage) and surge (over-voltage)conditions. The power tee circuitry 430 may provide for electrical powerdrawn from a network cable to provide both power supply and dataconnectivity to the infrastructure equipment 400 using a single cable.

The network controller circuitry 435 may provide connectivity to anetwork using a standard network interface protocol such as Ethernet,Ethernet over GRE Tunnels, Ethernet over Multiprotocol Label Switching(MPLS), or some other suitable protocol. Network connectivity may beprovided to/from the infrastructure equipment 400 via network interfaceconnector 440 using a physical connection, which may be electrical(commonly referred to as a “copper interconnect”), optical, or wireless.The network controller circuitry 435 may include one or more dedicatedprocessors and/or FPGAs to communicate using one or more of theaforementioned protocols. In some implementations, the networkcontroller circuitry 435 may include multiple controllers to provideconnectivity to other networks using the same or different protocols.

The positioning circuitry 445 includes circuitry to receive and decodesignals transmitted/broadcasted by a positioning network of a globalnavigation satellite system (GNSS). Examples of navigation satelliteconstellations (or GNSS) include United States' Global PositioningSystem (GPS), Russia's Global Navigation System (GLONASS), the EuropeanUnion's Galileo system, China's BeiDou Navigation Satellite System, aregional navigation system or GNSS augmentation system (e.g., Navigationwith Indian Constellation (NAVIC), Japan's Quasi-Zenith Satellite System(QZSS), France's Doppler Orbitography and Radio-positioning Integratedby Satellite (DORIS), etc.), or the like. The positioning circuitry 445comprises various hardware elements (e.g., including hardware devicessuch as switches, filters, amplifiers, antenna elements, and the like tofacilitate OTA communications) to communicate with components of apositioning network, such as navigation satellite constellation nodes.In some embodiments, the positioning circuitry 445 may include aMicro-Technology for Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (Micro-PNT) ICthat uses a master timing clock to perform position tracking/estimationwithout GNSS assistance. The positioning circuitry 445 may also be partof, or interact with, the baseband circuitry 410 and/or RFEMs 415 tocommunicate with the nodes and components of the positioning network.The positioning circuitry 445 may also provide position data and/or timedata to the application circuitry 405, which may use the data tosynchronize operations with various infrastructure (e.g., RAN nodes 111,etc.), or the like.

The components shown by FIG. 4 may communicate with one another usinginterface circuitry, which may include any number of bus and/orinterconnect (IX) technologies such as industry standard architecture(ISA), extended ISA (EISA), peripheral component interconnect (PCI),peripheral component interconnect extended (PCIx), PCI express (PCIe),or any number of other technologies. The bus/IX may be a proprietarybus, for example, used in a SoC based system. Other bus/IX systems maybe included, such as an I²C interface, an SPI interface, point to pointinterfaces, and a power bus, among others.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a platform 500 (or “device 500”) inaccordance with various embodiments. In embodiments, the computerplatform 500 may be suitable for use as UEs 101, 201, 301, applicationservers 130, and/or any other element/device discussed herein. Theplatform 500 may include any combinations of the components shown in theexample. The components of platform 500 may be implemented as integratedcircuits (ICs), portions thereof, discrete electronic devices, or othermodules, logic, hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereofadapted in the computer platform 500, or as components otherwiseincorporated within a chassis of a larger system. The block diagram ofFIG. 5 is intended to show a high level view of components of thecomputer platform 500. However, some of the components shown may beomitted, additional components may be present, and different arrangementof the components shown may occur in other implementations.

Application circuitry 505 includes circuitry such as, but not limited toone or more processors (or processor cores), cache memory, and one ormore of LDOs, interrupt controllers, serial interfaces such as SPI, I²Cor universal programmable serial interface module, RTC, timer-countersincluding interval and watchdog timers, general purpose I/O, memory cardcontrollers such as SD MMC or similar, USB interfaces, MIPI interfaces,and JTAG test access ports. The processors (or cores) of the applicationcircuitry 505 may be coupled with or may include memory/storage elementsand may be configured to execute instructions stored in thememory/storage to enable various applications or operating systems torun on the system 500. In some implementations, the memory/storageelements may be on-chip memory circuitry, which may include any suitablevolatile and/or non-volatile memory, such as DRAM, SRAM, EPROM, EEPROM,Flash memory, solid-state memory, and/or any other type of memory devicetechnology, such as those discussed herein.

The processor(s) of application circuitry 405 may include, for example,one or more processor cores, one or more application processors, one ormore GPUs, one or more RISC processors, one or more ARM processors, oneor more CISC processors, one or more DSP, one or more FPGAs, one or morePLDs, one or more ASICs, one or more microprocessors or controllers, amultithreaded processor, an ultra-low voltage processor, an embeddedprocessor, some other known processing element, or any suitablecombination thereof. In some embodiments, the application circuitry 405may comprise, or may be, a special-purpose processor/controller tooperate according to the various embodiments herein.

As examples, the processor(s) of application circuitry 505 may includean Intel® Architecture Core™ based processor, such as a Quark™, anAtom™, an i3, an i5, an i7, or an MCU-class processor, or another suchprocessor available from Intel® Corporation, Santa Clara, Calif. Theprocessors of the application circuitry 505 may also be one or more ofAdvanced Micro Devices (AMD) Ryzen® processor(s) or AcceleratedProcessing Units (APUs); A5-A9 processor(s) from Apple® Inc.,Snapdragon™ processor(s) from Qualcomm® Technologies, Inc., TexasInstruments, Inc.® Open Multimedia Applications Platform (OMAP)™processor(s); a MIPS-based design from MIPS Technologies, Inc. such asMIPS Warrior M-class, Warrior I-class, and Warrior P-class processors;an ARM-based design licensed from ARM Holdings, Ltd., such as the ARMCortex-A, Cortex-R, and Cortex-M family of processors; or the like. Insome implementations, the application circuitry 505 may be a part of asystem on a chip (SoC) in which the application circuitry 505 and othercomponents are formed into a single integrated circuit, or a singlepackage, such as the Edison™ or Galileo™ SoC boards from Intel®Corporation.

Additionally or alternatively, application circuitry 505 may includecircuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more a field-programmabledevices (FPDs) such as FPGAs and the like; programmable logic devices(PLDs) such as complex PLDs (CPLDs), high-capacity PLDs (HCPLDs), andthe like; ASICs such as structured ASICs and the like; programmable SoCs(PSoCs); and the like. In such embodiments, the circuitry of applicationcircuitry 505 may comprise logic blocks or logic fabric, and otherinterconnected resources that may be programmed to perform variousfunctions, such as the procedures, methods, functions, etc. of thevarious embodiments discussed herein. In such embodiments, the circuitryof application circuitry 505 may include memory cells (e.g., erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory, static memory(e.g., static random access memory (SRAM), anti-fuses, etc.)) used tostore logic blocks, logic fabric, data, etc. in look-up tables (LUTs)and the like.

The baseband circuitry 510 may be implemented, for example, as asolder-down substrate including one or more integrated circuits, asingle packaged integrated circuit soldered to a main circuit board or amulti-chip module containing two or more integrated circuits. Thevarious hardware electronic elements of baseband circuitry 510 arediscussed infra with regard to FIG. 6.

The RFEMs 515 may comprise a millimeter wave (mmWave) RFEM and one ormore sub-mmWave radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs). In someimplementations, the one or more sub-mmWave RFICs may be physicallyseparated from the mmWave RFEM. The RFICs may include connections to oneor more antennas or antenna arrays (see e.g., antenna array 611 of FIG.6 infra), and the RFEM may be connected to multiple antennas. Inalternative implementations, both mmWave and sub-mmWave radio functionsmay be implemented in the same physical RFEM 515, which incorporatesboth mmWave antennas and sub-mmWave.

The memory circuitry 520 may include any number and type of memorydevices used to provide for a given amount of system memory. Asexamples, the memory circuitry 520 may include one or more of volatilememory including random access memory (RAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM) and/orsynchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM), and nonvolatile memory (NVM) includinghigh-speed electrically erasable memory (commonly referred to as Flashmemory), phase change random access memory (PRAM), magnetoresistiverandom access memory (MRAM), etc. The memory circuitry 520 may bedeveloped in accordance with a Joint Electron Devices EngineeringCouncil (JEDEC) low power double data rate (LPDDR)-based design, such asLPDDR2, LPDDR3, LPDDR4, or the like. Memory circuitry 520 may beimplemented as one or more of solder down packaged integrated circuits,single die package (SDP), dual die package (DDP) or quad die package(Q17P), socketed memory modules, dual inline memory modules (DIMMs)including microDIMMs or MiniDIMMs, and/or soldered onto a motherboardvia a ball grid array (BGA). In low power implementations, the memorycircuitry 520 may be on-die memory or registers associated with theapplication circuitry 505. To provide for persistent storage ofinformation such as data, applications, operating systems and so forth,memory circuitry 520 may include one or more mass storage devices, whichmay include, inter alia, a solid state disk drive (SSDD), hard diskdrive (HDD), a micro HDD, resistance change memories, phase changememories, holographic memories, or chemical memories, among others. Forexample, the computer platform 500 may incorporate the three-dimensional(3D) cross-point (XPOINT) memories from Intel® and Micron®.

Removable memory circuitry 523 may include devices, circuitry,enclosures/housings, ports or receptacles, etc. used to couple portabledata storage devices with the platform 500. These portable data storagedevices may be used for mass storage purposes, and may include, forexample, flash memory cards (e.g., Secure Digital (SD) cards, microSDcards, xD picture cards, and the like), and USB flash drives, opticaldiscs, external HDDs, and the like.

The platform 500 may also include interface circuitry (not shown) thatis used to connect external devices with the platform 500. The externaldevices connected to the platform 500 via the interface circuitryinclude sensor circuitry 521 and electro-mechanical components (EMCs)522, as well as removable memory devices coupled to removable memorycircuitry 523.

The sensor circuitry 521 include devices, modules, or subsystems whosepurpose is to detect events or changes in its environment and send theinformation (sensor data) about the detected events to some other adevice, module, subsystem, etc. Examples of such sensors include, interalia, inertia measurement units (IMUs) comprising accelerometers,gyroscopes, and/or magnetometers; microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)or nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS) comprising 3-axisaccelerometers, 3-axis gyroscopes, and/or magnetometers; level sensors;flow sensors; temperature sensors (e.g., thermistors); pressure sensors;barometric pressure sensors; gravimeters; altimeters; image capturedevices (e.g., cameras or lensless apertures); light detection andranging (LiDAR) sensors; proximity sensors (e.g., infrared radiationdetector and the like), depth sensors, ambient light sensors, ultrasonictransceivers; microphones or other like audio capture devices; etc.

EMCs 522 include devices, modules, or subsystems whose purpose is toenable platform 500 to change its state, position, and/or orientation,or move or control a mechanism or (sub)system. Additionally, EMCs 522may be configured to generate and send messages/signalling to othercomponents of the platform 500 to indicate a current state of the EMCs522. Examples of the EMCs 522 include one or more power switches, relaysincluding electromechanical relays (EMRs) and/or solid state relays(SSRs), actuators (e.g., valve actuators, etc.), an audible soundgenerator, a visual warning device, motors (e.g., DC motors, steppermotors, etc.), wheels, thrusters, propellers, claws, clamps, hooks,and/or other like electro-mechanical components. In embodiments,platform 500 is configured to operate one or more EMCs 522 based on oneor more captured events and/or instructions or control signals receivedfrom a service provider and/or various clients.

In some implementations, the interface circuitry may connect theplatform 500 with positioning circuitry 545. The positioning circuitry545 includes circuitry to receive and decode signalstransmitted/broadcasted by a positioning network of a GNSS. Examples ofnavigation satellite constellations (or GNSS) include United States'GPS, Russia's GLONASS, the European Union's Galileo system, China'sBeiDou Navigation Satellite System, a regional navigation system or GNSSaugmentation system (e.g., NAVIC), Japan's QZSS, France's DORIS, etc.),or the like. The positioning circuitry 545 comprises various hardwareelements (e.g., including hardware devices such as switches, filters,amplifiers, antenna elements, and the like to facilitate OTAcommunications) to communicate with components of a positioning network,such as navigation satellite constellation nodes. In some embodiments,the positioning circuitry 545 may include a Micro-PNT IC that uses amaster timing clock to perform position tracking/estimation without GNSSassistance. The positioning circuitry 545 may also be part of, orinteract with, the baseband circuitry 410 and/or RFEMs 515 tocommunicate with the nodes and components of the positioning network.The positioning circuitry 545 may also provide position data and/or timedata to the application circuitry 505, which may use the data tosynchronize operations with various infrastructure (e.g., radio basestations), for turn-by-turn navigation applications, or the like.

In some implementations, the interface circuitry may connect theplatform 500 with Near-Field Communication (NFC) circuitry 540. NFCcircuitry 540 is configured to provide contactless, short-rangecommunications based on radio frequency identification (RFID) standards,wherein magnetic field induction is used to enable communication betweenNFC circuitry 540 and NFC-enabled devices external to the platform 500(e.g., an “NFC touchpoint”). NFC circuitry 540 comprises an NFCcontroller coupled with an antenna element and a processor coupled withthe NFC controller. The NFC controller may be a chip/IC providing NFCfunctionalities to the NFC circuitry 540 by executing NFC controllerfirmware and an NFC stack. The NFC stack may be executed by theprocessor to control the NFC controller, and the NFC controller firmwaremay be executed by the NFC controller to control the antenna element toemit short-range RF signals. The RF signals may power a passive NFC tag(e.g., a microchip embedded in a sticker or wristband) to transmitstored data to the NFC circuitry 540, or initiate data transfer betweenthe NFC circuitry 540 and another active NFC device (e.g., a smartphoneor an NFC-enabled POS terminal) that is proximate to the platform 500.

The driver circuitry 546 may include software and hardware elements thatoperate to control particular devices that are embedded in the platform500, attached to the platform 500, or otherwise communicatively coupledwith the platform 500. The driver circuitry 546 may include individualdrivers allowing other components of the platform 500 to interact withor control various input/output (I/O) devices that may be presentwithin, or connected to, the platform 500. For example, driver circuitry546 may include a display driver to control and allow access to adisplay device, a touchscreen driver to control and allow access to atouchscreen interface of the platform 500, sensor drivers to obtainsensor readings of sensor circuitry 521 and control and allow access tosensor circuitry 521, EMC drivers to obtain actuator positions of theEMCs 522 and/or control and allow access to the EMCs 522, a cameradriver to control and allow access to an embedded image capture device,audio drivers to control and allow access to one or more audio devices.

The power management integrated circuitry (PMIC) 525 (also referred toas “power management circuitry 525”) may manage power provided tovarious components of the platform 500. In particular, with respect tothe baseband circuitry 510, the PMIC 525 may control power-sourceselection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-to-DC conversion.The PMIC 525 may often be included when the platform 500 is capable ofbeing powered by a battery 530, for example, when the device is includedin a UE 101, 201, 301.

In some embodiments, the PMIC 525 may control, or otherwise be part of,various power saving mechanisms of the platform 500. For example, if theplatform 500 is in an RRC_Connected state, where it is still connectedto the RAN node as it expects to receive traffic shortly, then it mayenter a state known as Discontinuous Reception Mode (DRX) after a periodof inactivity. During this state, the platform 500 may power down forbrief intervals of time and thus save power. If there is no data trafficactivity for an extended period of time, then the platform 500 maytransition off to an RRC_Idle state, where it disconnects from thenetwork and does not perform operations such as channel qualityfeedback, handover, etc. The platform 500 goes into a very low powerstate and it performs paging where again it periodically wakes up tolisten to the network and then powers down again. The platform 500 maynot receive data in this state; in order to receive data, it musttransition back to RRC_Connected state. An additional power saving modemay allow a device to be unavailable to the network for periods longerthan a paging interval (ranging from seconds to a few hours). Duringthis time, the device is totally unreachable to the network and maypower down completely. Any data sent during this time incurs a largedelay and it is assumed the delay is acceptable.

A battery 530 may power the platform 500, although in some examples theplatform 500 may be mounted deployed in a fixed location, and may have apower supply coupled to an electrical grid. The battery 530 may be alithium ion battery, a metal-air battery, such as a zinc-air battery, analuminum-air battery, a lithium-air battery, and the like. In someimplementations, such as in V2X applications, the battery 530 may be atypical lead-acid automotive battery.

In some implementations, the battery 530 may be a “smart battery,” whichincludes or is coupled with a Battery Management System (BMS) or batterymonitoring integrated circuitry. The BMS may be included in the platform500 to track the state of charge (SoCh) of the battery 530. The BMS maybe used to monitor other parameters of the battery 530 to providefailure predictions, such as the state of health (SoH) and the state offunction (SoF) of the battery 530. The BMS may communicate theinformation of the battery 530 to the application circuitry 505 or othercomponents of the platform 500. The BMS may also include ananalog-to-digital (ADC) convertor that allows the application circuitry505 to directly monitor the voltage of the battery 530 or the currentflow from the battery 530. The battery parameters may be used todetermine actions that the platform 500 may perform, such astransmission frequency, network operation, sensing frequency, and thelike.

A power block, or other power supply coupled to an electrical grid maybe coupled with the BMS to charge the battery 530. In some examples, thepower block XS30 may be replaced with a wireless power receiver toobtain the power wirelessly, for example, through a loop antenna in thecomputer platform 500. In these examples, a wireless battery chargingcircuit may be included in the BMS. The specific charging circuitschosen may depend on the size of the battery 530, and thus, the currentrequired. The charging may be performed using the Airfuel standardpromulgated by the Airfuel Alliance, the Qi wireless charging standardpromulgated by the Wireless Power Consortium, or the Rezence chargingstandard promulgated by the Alliance for Wireless Power, among others.

User interface circuitry 550 includes various input/output (I/O) devicespresent within, or connected to, the platform 500, and includes one ormore user interfaces designed to enable user interaction with theplatform 500 and/or peripheral component interfaces designed to enableperipheral component interaction with the platform 500. The userinterface circuitry 550 includes input device circuitry and outputdevice circuitry. Input device circuitry includes any physical orvirtual means for accepting an input including, inter alia, one or morephysical or virtual buttons (e.g., a reset button), a physical keyboard,keypad, mouse, touchpad, touchscreen, microphones, scanner, headset,and/or the like. The output device circuitry includes any physical orvirtual means for showing information or otherwise conveyinginformation, such as sensor readings, actuator position(s), or otherlike information. Output device circuitry may include any number and/orcombinations of audio or visual display, including, inter alia, one ormore simple visual outputs/indicators (e.g., binary status indicators(e.g., light emitting diodes (LEDs)) and multi-character visual outputs,or more complex outputs such as display devices or touchscreens (e.g.,Liquid Chrystal Displays (LCD), LED displays, quantum dot displays,projectors, etc.), with the output of characters, graphics, multimediaobjects, and the like being generated or produced from the operation ofthe platform 500. The output device circuitry may also include speakersor other audio emitting devices, printer(s), and/or the like. In someembodiments, the sensor circuitry 521 may be used as the input devicecircuitry (e.g., an image capture device, motion capture device, or thelike) and one or more EMCs may be used as the output device circuitry(e.g., an actuator to provide haptic feedback or the like). In anotherexample, NFC circuitry comprising an NFC controller coupled with anantenna element and a processing device may be included to readelectronic tags and/or connect with another NFC-enabled device.Peripheral component interfaces may include, but are not limited to, anon-volatile memory port, a USB port, an audio jack, a power supplyinterface, etc.

Although not shown, the components of platform 500 may communicate withone another using a suitable bus or interconnect (IX) technology, whichmay include any number of technologies, including ISA, EISA, PCI, PCIx,PCIe, a Time-Trigger Protocol (TTP) system, a FlexRay system, or anynumber of other technologies. The bus/IX may be a proprietary bus/IX,for example, used in a SoC based system. Other bus/IX systems may beincluded, such as an I²C interface, an SPI interface, point-to-pointinterfaces, and a power bus, among others.

FIG. 6 illustrates example components of baseband circuitry 610 andradio front end modules (RFEM) 615 in accordance with variousembodiments. The baseband circuitry 610 corresponds to the basebandcircuitry 410 and 510 of FIGS. 4 and 5, respectively. The RFEM 615corresponds to the RFEM 415 and 515 of FIGS. 4 and 5, respectively. Asshown, the RFEMs 615 may include Radio Frequency (RF) circuitry 606,front-end module (FEM) circuitry 608, antenna array 611 coupled togetherat least as shown.

The baseband circuitry 610 includes circuitry and/or control logicconfigured to carry out various radio/network protocol and radio controlfunctions that enable communication with one or more radio networks viathe RF circuitry 606. The radio control functions may include, but arenot limited to, signal modulation/demodulation, encoding/decoding, radiofrequency shifting, etc. In some embodiments, modulation/demodulationcircuitry of the baseband circuitry 610 may include Fast-FourierTransform (FFT), precoding, or constellation mapping/demappingfunctionality. In some embodiments, encoding/decoding circuitry of thebaseband circuitry 610 may include convolution, tail-biting convolution,turbo, Viterbi, or Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) encoder/decoderfunctionality. Embodiments of modulation/demodulation andencoder/decoder functionality are not limited to these examples and mayinclude other suitable functionality in other embodiments. The basebandcircuitry 610 is configured to process baseband signals received from areceive signal path of the RF circuitry 606 and to generate basebandsignals for a transmit signal path of the RF circuitry 606. The basebandcircuitry 610 is configured to interface with application circuitry405/505 (see FIGS. 4 and 5) for generation and processing of thebaseband signals and for controlling operations of the RF circuitry 606.The baseband circuitry 610 may handle various radio control functions.

The aforementioned circuitry and/or control logic of the basebandcircuitry 610 may include one or more single or multi-core processors.For example, the one or more processors may include a 3G basebandprocessor 604A, a 4G/LTE baseband processor 604B, a 5G/NR basebandprocessor 604C, or some other baseband processor(s) 604D for otherexisting generations, generations in development or to be developed inthe future (e.g., sixth generation (6G), etc.). In other embodiments,some or all of the functionality of baseband processors 604A-D may beincluded in modules stored in the memory 604G and executed via a CentralProcessing Unit (CPU) 604E. In other embodiments, some or all of thefunctionality of baseband processors 604A-D may be provided as hardwareaccelerators (e.g., FPGAs, ASICs, etc.) loaded with the appropriate bitstreams or logic blocks stored in respective memory cells. In variousembodiments, the memory 604G may store program code of a real-time OS(RTOS), which when executed by the CPU 604E (or other basebandprocessor), is to cause the CPU 604E (or other baseband processor) tomanage resources of the baseband circuitry 610, schedule tasks, etc.Examples of the RTOS may include Operating System Embedded (OSE)™provided by Enea®, Nucleus RTOS™ provided by Mentor Graphics®, VersatileReal-Time Executive (VRTX) provided by Mentor Graphics®, ThreadX™provided by Express Logic®, FreeRTOS, REX OS provided by Qualcomm®, OKL4provided by Open Kernel (OK) Labs®, or any other suitable RTOS, such asthose discussed herein. In addition, the baseband circuitry 610 includesone or more audio digital signal processor(s) (DSP) 604F. The audioDSP(s) 604F include elements for compression/decompression and echocancellation and may include other suitable processing elements in otherembodiments.

In some embodiments, each of the processors 604A-604E include respectivememory interfaces to send/receive data to/from the memory 604G. Thebaseband circuitry 610 may further include one or more interfaces tocommunicatively couple to other circuitries/devices, such as aninterface to send/receive data to/from memory external to the basebandcircuitry 610; an application circuitry interface to send/receive datato/from the application circuitry 405/505 of FIG. 4-XT); an RF circuitryinterface to send/receive data to/from RF circuitry 606 of FIG. 6; awireless hardware connectivity interface to send/receive data to/fromone or more wireless hardware elements (e.g., Near Field Communication(NFC) components, Bluetooth®/Bluetooth® Low Energy components, Wi-Fi®components, and/or the like); and a power management interface tosend/receive power or control signals to/from the PMIC 525.

In alternate embodiments (which may be combined with the above describedembodiments), baseband circuitry 610 comprises one or more digitalbaseband systems, which are coupled with one another via an interconnectsubsystem and to a CPU subsystem, an audio subsystem, and an interfacesubsystem. The digital baseband subsystems may also be coupled to adigital baseband interface and a mixed-signal baseband subsystem viaanother interconnect subsystem. Each of the interconnect subsystems mayinclude a bus system, point-to-point connections, network-on-chip (NOC)structures, and/or some other suitable bus or interconnect technology,such as those discussed herein. The audio subsystem may include DSPcircuitry, buffer memory, program memory, speech processing acceleratorcircuitry, data converter circuitry such as analog-to-digital anddigital-to-analog converter circuitry, analog circuitry including one ormore of amplifiers and filters, and/or other like components. In anaspect of the present disclosure, baseband circuitry 610 may includeprotocol processing circuitry with one or more instances of controlcircuitry (not shown) to provide control functions for the digitalbaseband circuitry and/or radio frequency circuitry (e.g., the radiofront end modules 615).

Although not shown by FIG. 6, in some embodiments, the basebandcircuitry 610 includes individual processing device(s) to operate one ormore wireless communication protocols (e.g., a “multi-protocol basebandprocessor” or “protocol processing circuitry”) and individual processingdevice(s) to implement PHY layer functions. In these embodiments, thePHY layer functions include the aforementioned radio control functions.In these embodiments, the protocol processing circuitry operates orimplements various protocol layers/entities of one or more wirelesscommunication protocols. In a first example, the protocol processingcircuitry may operate LTE protocol entities and/or 5G/NR protocolentities when the baseband circuitry 610 and/or RF circuitry 606 arepart of mmWave communication circuitry or some other suitable cellularcommunication circuitry. In the first example, the protocol processingcircuitry would operate MAC, RLC, PDCP, SDAP, RRC, and NAS functions. Ina second example, the protocol processing circuitry may operate one ormore IEEE-based protocols when the baseband circuitry 610 and/or RFcircuitry 606 are part of a Wi-Fi communication system. In the secondexample, the protocol processing circuitry would operate Wi-Fi MAC andlogical link control (LLC) functions. The protocol processing circuitrymay include one or more memory structures (e.g., 604G) to store programcode and data for operating the protocol functions, as well as one ormore processing cores to execute the program code and perform variousoperations using the data. The baseband circuitry 610 may also supportradio communications for more than one wireless protocol.

The various hardware elements of the baseband circuitry 610 discussedherein may be implemented, for example, as a solder-down substrateincluding one or more integrated circuits (ICs), a single packaged ICsoldered to a main circuit board or a multi-chip module containing twoor more ICs. In one example, the components of the baseband circuitry610 may be suitably combined in a single chip or chipset, or disposed ona same circuit board. In another example, some or all of the constituentcomponents of the baseband circuitry 610 and RF circuitry 606 may beimplemented together such as, for example, a system on a chip (SoC) orSystem-in-Package (SiP). In another example, some or all of theconstituent components of the baseband circuitry 610 may be implementedas a separate SoC that is communicatively coupled with and RF circuitry606 (or multiple instances of RF circuitry 606). In yet another example,some or all of the constituent components of the baseband circuitry 610and the application circuitry 405/505 may be implemented together asindividual SoCs mounted to a same circuit board (e.g., a “multi-chippackage”).

In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 610 may provide forcommunication compatible with one or more radio technologies. Forexample, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 610 may supportcommunication with an E-UTRAN or other WMAN, a WLAN, a WPAN. Embodimentsin which the baseband circuitry 610 is configured to support radiocommunications of more than one wireless protocol may be referred to asmulti-mode baseband circuitry.

RF circuitry 606 may enable communication with wireless networks usingmodulated electromagnetic radiation through a non-solid medium. Invarious embodiments, the RF circuitry 606 may include switches, filters,amplifiers, etc. to facilitate the communication with the wirelessnetwork. RF circuitry 606 may include a receive signal path, which mayinclude circuitry to down-convert RF signals received from the FEMcircuitry 608 and provide baseband signals to the baseband circuitry610. RF circuitry 606 may also include a transmit signal path, which mayinclude circuitry to up-convert baseband signals provided by thebaseband circuitry 610 and provide RF output signals to the FEMcircuitry 608 for transmission.

In some embodiments, the receive signal path of the RF circuitry 606 mayinclude mixer circuitry 606 a, amplifier circuitry 606 b and filtercircuitry 606 c. In some embodiments, the transmit signal path of the RFcircuitry 606 may include filter circuitry 606 c and mixer circuitry 606a. RF circuitry 606 may also include synthesizer circuitry 606 d forsynthesizing a frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 606 a of thereceive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some embodiments,the mixer circuitry 606 a of the receive signal path may be configuredto down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry 608 based onthe synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuitry 606 d. Theamplifier circuitry 606 b may be configured to amplify thedown-converted signals and the filter circuitry 606 c may be a low-passfilter (LPF) or band-pass filter (BPF) configured to remove unwantedsignals from the down-converted signals to generate output basebandsignals. Output baseband signals may be provided to the basebandcircuitry 610 for further processing. In some embodiments, the outputbaseband signals may be zero-frequency baseband signals, although thisis not a requirement. In some embodiments, mixer circuitry 606 a of thereceive signal path may comprise passive mixers, although the scope ofthe embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 606 a of the transmit signalpath may be configured to up-convert input baseband signals based on thesynthesized frequency provided by the synthesizer circuitry 606 d togenerate RF output signals for the FEM circuitry 608. The basebandsignals may be provided by the baseband circuitry 610 and may befiltered by filter circuitry 606 c.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 606 a of the receive signalpath and the mixer circuitry 606 a of the transmit signal path mayinclude two or more mixers and may be arranged for quadraturedownconversion and upconversion, respectively. In some embodiments, themixer circuitry 606 a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry606 a of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and maybe arranged for image rejection (e.g., Hartley image rejection). In someembodiments, the mixer circuitry 606 a of the receive signal path andthe mixer circuitry 606 a of the transmit signal path may be arrangedfor direct downconversion and direct upconversion, respectively. In someembodiments, the mixer circuitry 606 a of the receive signal path andthe mixer circuitry 606 a of the transmit signal path may be configuredfor super-heterodyne operation.

In some embodiments, the output baseband signals and the input basebandsignals may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of theembodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternateembodiments, the output baseband signals and the input baseband signalsmay be digital baseband signals. In these alternate embodiments, the RFcircuitry 606 may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) anddigital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry and the baseband circuitry610 may include a digital baseband interface to communicate with the RFcircuitry 606.

In some dual-mode embodiments, a separate radio IC circuitry may beprovided for processing signals for each spectrum, although the scope ofthe embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 606 d may be afractional-N synthesizer or a fractional N/N+1 synthesizer, although thescope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect as other typesof frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, synthesizercircuitry 606 d may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequencymultiplier, or a synthesizer comprising a phase-locked loop with afrequency divider.

The synthesizer circuitry 606 d may be configured to synthesize anoutput frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 606 a of the RFcircuitry 606 based on a frequency input and a divider control input. Insome embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 606 d may be a fractionalN/N+1 synthesizer.

In some embodiments, frequency input may be provided by a voltagecontrolled oscillator (VCO), although that is not a requirement. Dividercontrol input may be provided by either the baseband circuitry 610 orthe application circuitry 405/505 depending on the desired outputfrequency. In some embodiments, a divider control input (e.g., N) may bedetermined from a look-up table based on a channel indicated by theapplication circuitry 405/505.

Synthesizer circuitry 606 d of the RF circuitry 606 may include adivider, a delay-locked loop (DLL), a multiplexer and a phaseaccumulator. In some embodiments, the divider may be a dual modulusdivider (DMD) and the phase accumulator may be a digital phaseaccumulator (DPA). In some embodiments, the DMD may be configured todivide the input signal by either N or N+1 (e.g., based on a carry out)to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example embodiments, theDLL may include a set of cascaded, tunable, delay elements, a phasedetector, a charge pump and a D-type flip-flop. In these embodiments,the delay elements may be configured to break a VCO period up into Ndequal packets of phase, where Nd is the number of delay elements in thedelay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to helpensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO cycle.

In some embodiments, synthesizer circuitry 606 d may be configured togenerate a carrier frequency as the output frequency, while in otherembodiments, the output frequency may be a multiple of the carrierfrequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrierfrequency) and used in conjunction with quadrature generator and dividercircuitry to generate multiple signals at the carrier frequency withmultiple different phases with respect to each other. In someembodiments, the output frequency may be a LO frequency (fLO). In someembodiments, the RF circuitry 606 may include an IQ/polar converter.

FEM circuitry 608 may include a receive signal path, which may includecircuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from antennaarray 611, amplify the received signals and provide the amplifiedversions of the received signals to the RF circuitry 606 for furtherprocessing. FEM circuitry 608 may also include a transmit signal path,which may include circuitry configured to amplify signals fortransmission provided by the RF circuitry 606 for transmission by one ormore of antenna elements of antenna array 611. In various embodiments,the amplification through the transmit or receive signal paths may bedone solely in the RF circuitry 606, solely in the FEM circuitry 608, orin both the RF circuitry 606 and the FEM circuitry 608.

In some embodiments, the FEM circuitry 608 may include a TX/RX switch toswitch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEMcircuitry 608 may include a receive signal path and a transmit signalpath. The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry 608 may include anLNA to amplify received RF signals and provide the amplified received RFsignals as an output (e.g., to the RF circuitry 606). The transmitsignal path of the FEM circuitry 608 may include a power amplifier (PA)to amplify input RF signals (e.g., provided by RF circuitry 606), andone or more filters to generate RF signals for subsequent transmissionby one or more antenna elements of the antenna array 611.

The antenna array 611 comprises one or more antenna elements, each ofwhich is configured convert electrical signals into radio waves totravel through the air and to convert received radio waves intoelectrical signals. For example, digital baseband signals provided bythe baseband circuitry 610 is converted into analog RF signals (e.g.,modulated waveform) that will be amplified and transmitted via theantenna elements of the antenna array 611 including one or more antennaelements (not shown). The antenna elements may be omnidirectional,direction, or a combination thereof. The antenna elements may be formedin a multitude of arranges as are known and/or discussed herein. Theantenna array 611 may comprise microstrip antennas or printed antennasthat are fabricated on the surface of one or more printed circuitboards. The antenna array 611 may be formed in as a patch of metal foil(e.g., a patch antenna) in a variety of shapes, and may be coupled withthe RF circuitry 606 and/or FEM circuitry 608 using metal transmissionlines or the like.

Processors of the application circuitry 405/505 and processors of thebaseband circuitry 610 may be used to execute elements of one or moreinstances of a protocol stack. For example, processors of the basebandcircuitry 610, alone or in combination, may be used execute Layer 3,Layer 2, or Layer 1 functionality, while processors of the applicationcircuitry 405/505 may utilize data (e.g., packet data) received fromthese layers and further execute Layer 4 functionality (e.g., TCP andUDP layers). As referred to herein, Layer 3 may comprise a RRC layer,described in further detail below. As referred to herein, Layer 2 maycomprise a MAC layer, an RLC layer, and a PDCP layer, described infurther detail below. As referred to herein, Layer 1 may comprise a PHYlayer of a UE/RAN node, described in further detail below.

FIG. 7 illustrates various protocol functions that may be implemented ina wireless communication device according to various embodiments. Inparticular, FIG. 7 includes an arrangement 700 showing interconnectionsbetween various protocol layers/entities. The following description ofFIG. 7 is provided for various protocol layers/entities that operate inconjunction with the 5G/NR system standards and LTE system standards,but some or all of the aspects of FIG. 7 may be applicable to otherwireless communication network systems as well.

The protocol layers of arrangement 700 may include one or more of PHY710, MAC 720, RLC 730, PDCP 740, SDAP 747, RRC 755, and NAS layer 757,in addition to other higher layer functions not illustrated. Theprotocol layers may include one or more service access points (e.g.,items 759, 756, 750, 749, 745, 735, 725, and 715 in FIG. 7) that mayprovide communication between two or more protocol layers.

The PHY 710 may transmit and receive physical layer signals 705 that maybe received from or transmitted to one or more other communicationdevices. The physical layer signals 705 may comprise one or morephysical channels, such as those discussed herein. The PHY 710 mayfurther perform link adaptation or adaptive modulation and coding (AMC),power control, cell search (e.g., for initial synchronization andhandover purposes), and other measurements used by higher layers, suchas the RRC 755. The PHY 710 may still further perform error detection onthe transport channels, forward error correction (FEC) coding/decodingof the transport channels, modulation/demodulation of physical channels,interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto physical channels, and MIMOantenna processing. In embodiments, an instance of PHY 710 may processrequests from and provide indications to an instance of MAC 720 via oneor more PHY-SAP 715. According to some embodiments, requests andindications communicated via PHY-SAP 715 may comprise one or moretransport channels.

Instance(s) of MAC 720 may process requests from, and provideindications to, an instance of RLC 730 via one or more MAC-SAPs 725.These requests and indications communicated via the MAC-SAP 725 maycomprise one or more logical channels. The MAC 720 may perform mappingbetween the logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MACSDUs from one or more logical channels onto TBs to be delivered to PHY710 via the transport channels, de-multiplexing MAC SDUs to one or morelogical channels from TBs delivered from the PHY 710 via transportchannels, multiplexing MAC SDUs onto TBs, scheduling informationreporting, error correction through HARQ, and logical channelprioritization.

Instance(s) of RLC 730 may process requests from and provide indicationsto an instance of PDCP 740 via one or more radio link control serviceaccess points (RLC-SAP) 735. These requests and indications communicatedvia RLC-SAP 735 may comprise one or more RLC channels. The RLC 730 mayoperate in a plurality of modes of operation, including: TransparentMode™, Unacknowledged Mode (UM), and Acknowledged Mode (AM). The RLC 730may execute transfer of upper layer protocol data units (PDUs), errorcorrection through automatic repeat request (ARQ) for AM data transfers,and concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs for UM and AMdata transfers. The RLC 730 may also execute re-segmentation of RLC dataPDUs for AM data transfers, reorder RLC data PDUs for UM and AM datatransfers, detect duplicate data for UM and AM data transfers, discardRLC SDUs for UM and AM data transfers, detect protocol errors for AMdata transfers, and perform RLC re-establishment.

Instance(s) of PDCP 740 may process requests from and provideindications to instance(s) of RRC 755 and/or instance(s) of SDAP 747 viaone or more packet data convergence protocol service access points(PDCP-SAP) 745. These requests and indications communicated via PDCP-SAP745 may comprise one or more radio bearers. The PDCP 740 may executeheader compression and decompression of IP data, maintain PDCP SequenceNumbers (SNs), perform in-sequence delivery of upper layer PDUs atre-establishment of lower layers, eliminate duplicates of lower layerSDUs at re-establishment of lower layers for radio bearers mapped on RLCAM, cipher and decipher control plane data, perform integrity protectionand integrity verification of control plane data, control timer-baseddiscard of data, and perform security operations (e.g., ciphering,deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification, etc.).

Instance(s) of SDAP 747 may process requests from and provideindications to one or more higher layer protocol entities via one ormore SDAP-SAP 749. These requests and indications communicated viaSDAP-SAP 749 may comprise one or more QoS flows. The SDAP 747 may mapQoS flows to DRBs, and vice versa, and may also mark QFIs in DL and ULpackets. A single SDAP entity 747 may be configured for an individualPDU session. In the UL direction, the NG-RAN 110 may control the mappingof QoS Flows to DRB(s) in two different ways, reflective mapping orexplicit mapping. For reflective mapping, the SDAP 747 of a UE 101 maymonitor the QFIs of the DL packets for each DRB, and may apply the samemapping for packets flowing in the UL direction. For a DRB, the SDAP 747of the UE 101 may map the UL packets belonging to the QoS flows(s)corresponding to the QoS flow ID(s) and PDU session observed in the DLpackets for that DRB. To enable reflective mapping, the NG-RAN 310 maymark DL packets over the Uu interface with a QoS flow ID. The explicitmapping may involve the RRC 755 configuring the SDAP 747 with anexplicit QoS flow to DRB mapping rule, which may be stored and followedby the SDAP 747. In embodiments, the SDAP 747 may only be used in NRimplementations and may not be used in LTE implementations.

The RRC 755 may configure, via one or more management service accesspoints (M-SAP), aspects of one or more protocol layers, which mayinclude one or more instances of PHY 710, MAC 720, RLC 730, PDCP 740 andSDAP 747. In embodiments, an instance of RRC 755 may process requestsfrom and provide indications to one or more NAS entities 757 via one ormore RRC-SAPs 756. The main services and functions of the RRC 755 mayinclude broadcast of system information (e.g., included in MIBs or SIBsrelated to the NAS), broadcast of system information related to theaccess stratum (AS), paging, establishment, maintenance and release ofan RRC connection between the UE 101 and RAN 110 (e.g., RRC connectionpaging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, andRRC connection release), establishment, configuration, maintenance andrelease of point to point Radio Bearers, security functions includingkey management, inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration for UEmeasurement reporting. The MIBs and SIBs may comprise one or more IEs,which may each comprise individual data fields or data structures.

The NAS 757 may form the highest stratum of the control plane betweenthe UE 101 and the AMF 321. The NAS 757 may support the mobility of theUEs 101 and the session management procedures to establish and maintainIP connectivity between the UE 101 and a P-GW in LTE systems.

According to various embodiments, one or more protocol entities ofarrangement 700 may be implemented in UEs 101, RAN nodes 111, AMF 321 inNR implementations or MME 221 in LTE implementations, UPF 302 in NRimplementations or S-GW 222 and P-GW 223 in LTE implementations, or thelike to be used for control plane or user plane communications protocolstack between the aforementioned devices. In such embodiments, one ormore protocol entities that may be implemented in one or more of UE 101,gNB 111, AMF 321, etc. may communicate with a respective peer protocolentity that may be implemented in or on another device using theservices of respective lower layer protocol entities to perform suchcommunication. In some embodiments, a gNB-CU of the gNB 11 l may hostthe RRC 755, SDAP 747, and PDCP 740 of the gNB that controls theoperation of one or more gNB-DUs, and the gNB-DUs of the gNB 111 mayeach host the RLC 730, MAC 720, and PHY 710 of the gNB 111.

In a first example, a control plane protocol stack may comprise, inorder from highest layer to lowest layer, NAS 757, RRC 755, PDCP 740,RLC 730, MAC 720, and PHY 710. In this example, upper layers 760 may bebuilt on top of the NAS 757, which includes an IP layer 761, an SCTP762, and an application layer signaling protocol (AP) 763.

In NR implementations, the AP 763 may be an NG application protocollayer (NGAP or NG-AP) 763 for the NG interface 113 defined between theNG-RAN node 111 and the AMF 321, or the AP 763 may be an Xn applicationprotocol layer (XnAP or Xn-AP) 763 for the Xn interface 112 that isdefined between two or more RAN nodes 111.

The NG-AP 763 may support the functions of the NG interface 113 and maycomprise Elementary Procedures (EPs). An NG-AP EP may be a unit ofinteraction between the NG-RAN node 111 and the AMF 321. The NG-AP 763services may comprise two groups: UE-associated services (e.g., servicesrelated to a UE 101) and non-UE-associated services (e.g., servicesrelated to the whole NG interface instance between the NG-RAN node 111and AMF 321). These services may include functions including, but notlimited to: a paging function for the sending of paging requests toNG-RAN nodes 111 involved in a particular paging area; a UE contextmanagement function for allowing the AMF 321 to establish, modify,and/or release a UE context in the AMF 321 and the NG-RAN node 111; amobility function for UEs 101 in ECM-CONNECTED mode for intra-system HOsto support mobility within NG-RAN and inter-system HOs to supportmobility from/to EPS systems; a NAS Signaling Transport function fortransporting or rerouting NAS messages between UE 101 and AMF 321; a NASnode selection function for determining an association between the AMF321 and the UE 101; NG interface management function(s) for setting upthe NG interface and monitoring for errors over the NG interface; awarning message transmission function for providing means to transferwarning messages via NG interface or cancel ongoing broadcast of warningmessages; a Configuration Transfer function for requesting andtransferring of RAN configuration information (e.g., SON information,performance measurement (PM) data, etc.) between two RAN nodes 111 viaCN 120; and/or other like functions.

The XnAP 763 may support the functions of the Xn interface 112 and maycomprise XnAP basic mobility procedures and XnAP global procedures. TheXnAP basic mobility procedures may comprise procedures used to handle UEmobility within the NG RAN 111 (or E-UTRAN 210), such as handoverpreparation and cancellation procedures, SN Status Transfer procedures,UE context retrieval and UE context release procedures, RAN pagingprocedures, dual connectivity related procedures, and the like. The XnAPglobal procedures may comprise procedures that are not related to aspecific UE 101, such as Xn interface setup and reset procedures, NG-RANupdate procedures, cell activation procedures, and the like.

In LTE implementations, the AP 763 may be an S1 Application Protocollayer (S1-AP) 763 for the S1 interface 113 defined between an E-UTRANnode 111 and an MME, or the AP 763 may be an X2 application protocollayer (X2AP or X2-AP) 763 for the X2 interface 112 that is definedbetween two or more E-UTRAN nodes 111.

The S1 Application Protocol layer (S1-AP) 763 may support the functionsof the S1 interface, and similar to the NG-AP discussed previously, theS1-AP may comprise S1-AP EPs. An S1-AP EP may be a unit of interactionbetween the E-UTRAN node 111 and an MME 221 within an LTE CN 120. TheS1-AP 763 services may comprise two groups: UE-associated services andnon UE-associated services. These services perform functions including,but not limited to: E-UTRAN Radio Access Bearer (E-RAB) management, UEcapability indication, mobility, NAS signaling transport, RANInformation Management (RIM), and configuration transfer.

The X2AP 763 may support the functions of the X2 interface 112 and maycomprise X2AP basic mobility procedures and X2AP global procedures. TheX2AP basic mobility procedures may comprise procedures used to handle UEmobility within the E-UTRAN 120, such as handover preparation andcancellation procedures, SN Status Transfer procedures, UE contextretrieval and UE context release procedures, RAN paging procedures, dualconnectivity related procedures, and the like. The X2AP globalprocedures may comprise procedures that are not related to a specific UE101, such as X2 interface setup and reset procedures, load indicationprocedures, error indication procedures, cell activation procedures, andthe like.

The SCTP layer (alternatively referred to as the SCTP/IP layer) 762 mayprovide guaranteed delivery of application layer messages (e.g., NGAP orXnAP messages in NR implementations, or S1-AP or X2AP messages in LTEimplementations). The SCTP 762 may ensure reliable delivery of signalingmessages between the RAN node 111 and the AMF 321/MME 221 based, inpart, on the IP protocol, supported by the IP 761. The Internet Protocollayer (IP) 761 may be used to perform packet addressing and routingfunctionality. In some implementations the IP layer 761 may usepoint-to-point transmission to deliver and convey PDUs. In this regard,the RAN node 111 may comprise L2 and L1 layer communication links (e.g.,wired or wireless) with the MME/AMF to exchange information.

In a second example, a user plane protocol stack may comprise, in orderfrom highest layer to lowest layer, SDAP 747, PDCP 740, RLC 730, MAC720, and PHY 710. The user plane protocol stack may be used forcommunication between the UE 101, the RAN node 111, and UPF 302 in NRimplementations or an S-GW 222 and P-GW 223 in LTE implementations. Inthis example, upper layers 751 may be built on top of the SDAP 747, andmay include a user datagram protocol (UDP) and IP security layer(UDP/IP) 752, a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Tunneling Protocolfor the user plane layer (GTP-U) 753, and a User Plane PDU layer (UPPDU) 763.

The transport network layer 754 (also referred to as a “transportlayer”) may be built on IP transport, and the GTP-U 753 may be used ontop of the UDP/IP layer 752 (comprising a UDP layer and IP layer) tocarry user plane PDUs (UP-PDUs). The IP layer (also referred to as the“Internet layer”) may be used to perform packet addressing and routingfunctionality. The IP layer may assign IP addresses to user data packetsin any of IPv4, IPv6, or PPP formats, for example.

The GTP-U 753 may be used for carrying user data within the GPRS corenetwork and between the radio access network and the core network. Theuser data transported can be packets in any of IPv4, IPv6, or PPPformats, for example. The UDP/IP 752 may provide checksums for dataintegrity, port numbers for addressing different functions at the sourceand destination, and encryption and authentication on the selected dataflows. The RAN node 111 and the S-GW 222 may utilize an S1-U interfaceto exchange user plane data via a protocol stack comprising an L1 layer(e.g., PHY 710), an L2 layer (e.g., MAC 720, RLC 730, PDCP 740, and/orSDAP 747), the UDP/IP layer 752, and the GTP-U 753. The S-GW 222 and theP-GW 223 may utilize an S5/S8a interface to exchange user plane data viaa protocol stack comprising an L1 layer, an L2 layer, the UDP/IP layer752, and the GTP-U 753. As discussed previously, NAS protocols maysupport the mobility of the UE 101 and the session management proceduresto establish and maintain IP connectivity between the UE 101 and theP-GW 223.

Moreover, although not shown by FIG. 7, an application layer may bepresent above the AP 763 and/or the transport network layer 754. Theapplication layer may be a layer in which a user of the UE 101, RAN node111, or other network element interacts with software applications beingexecuted, for example, by application circuitry 405 or applicationcircuitry 505, respectively. The application layer may also provide oneor more interfaces for software applications to interact withcommunications systems of the UE 101 or RAN node 111, such as thebaseband circuitry 610. In some implementations the IP layer and/or theapplication layer may provide the same or similar functionality aslayers 5-7, or portions thereof, of the Open Systems Interconnection(OSI) model (e.g., OSI Layer 7—the application layer, OSI Layer 6—thepresentation layer, and OSI Layer 5—the session layer).

FIG. 8 illustrates components of a core network in accordance withvarious embodiments. The components of the CN 220 may be implemented inone physical node or separate physical nodes including components toread and execute instructions from a machine-readable orcomputer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readablestorage medium). In embodiments, the components of CN 320 may beimplemented in a same or similar manner as discussed herein with regardto the components of CN 220. In some embodiments, NFV is utilized tovirtualize any or all of the above-described network node functions viaexecutable instructions stored in one or more computer-readable storagemediums (described in further detail below). A logical instantiation ofthe CN 220 may be referred to as a network slice 801, and individuallogical instantiations of the CN 220 may provide specific networkcapabilities and network characteristics. A logical instantiation of aportion of the CN 220 may be referred to as a network sub-slice 802(e.g., the network sub-slice 802 is shown to include the P-GW 223 andthe PCRF 226).

As used herein, the terms “instantiate,” “instantiation,” and the likemay refer to the creation of an instance, and an “instance” may refer toa concrete occurrence of an object, which may occur, for example, duringexecution of program code. A network instance may refer to informationidentifying a domain, which may be used for traffic detection androuting in case of different IP domains or overlapping IP addresses. Anetwork slice instance may refer to a set of network functions (NFs)instances and the resources (e.g., compute, storage, and networkingresources) required to deploy the network slice.

With respect to 5G systems (see, e.g., FIG. 3), a network slice alwayscomprises a RAN part and a CN part. The support of network slicingrelies on the principle that traffic for different slices is handled bydifferent PDU sessions. The network can realize the different networkslices by scheduling and also by providing different L1/L2configurations. The UE 301 provides assistance information for networkslice selection in an appropriate RRC message, if it has been providedby NAS. While the network can support large number of slices, the UEneed not support more than 8 slices simultaneously.

A network slice may include the CN 320 control plane and user plane NFs,NG-RANs 310 in a serving PLMN, and a N3IWF functions in the servingPLMN. Individual network slices may have different S-NSSAI and/or mayhave different SSTs. NSSAI includes one or more S-NSSAIs, and eachnetwork slice is uniquely identified by an S-NSSAI. Network slices maydiffer for supported features and network functions optimizations,and/or multiple network slice instances may deliver the sameservice/features but for different groups of UEs 301 (e.g., enterpriseusers). For example, individual network slices may deliver differentcommitted service(s) and/or may be dedicated to a particular customer orenterprise. In this example, each network slice may have differentS-NSSAIs with the same SST but with different slice differentiators.Additionally, a single UE may be served with one or more network sliceinstances simultaneously via a 5G AN and associated with eight differentS-NSSAIs. Moreover, an AMF 321 instance serving an individual UE 301 maybelong to each of the network slice instances serving that UE.

Network Slicing in the NG-RAN 310 involves RAN slice awareness. RANslice awareness includes differentiated handling of traffic fordifferent network slices, which have been pre-configured. Sliceawareness in the NG-RAN 310 is introduced at the PDU session level byindicating the S-NSSAI corresponding to a PDU session in all signalingthat includes PDU session resource information. How the NG-RAN 310supports the slice enabling in terms of NG-RAN functions (e.g., the setof network functions that comprise each slice) is implementationdependent. The NG-RAN 310 selects the RAN part of the network sliceusing assistance information provided by the UE 301 or the 5GC 320,which unambiguously identifies one or more of the pre-configured networkslices in the PLMN. The NG-RAN 310 also supports resource management andpolicy enforcement between slices as per SLAs. A single NG-RAN node maysupport multiple slices, and the NG-RAN 310 may also apply anappropriate RRM policy for the SLA in place to each supported slice. TheNG-RAN 310 may also support QoS differentiation within a slice.

The NG-RAN 310 may also use the UE assistance information for theselection of an AMF 321 during an initial attach, if available. TheNG-RAN 310 uses the assistance information for routing the initial NASto an AMF 321. If the NG-RAN 310 is unable to select an AMF 321 usingthe assistance information, or the UE 301 does not provide any suchinformation, the NG-RAN 310 sends the NAS signaling to a default AMF321, which may be among a pool of AMFs 321. For subsequent accesses, theUE 301 provides a temp ID, which is assigned to the UE 301 by the 5GC320, to enable the NG-RAN 310 to route the NAS message to theappropriate AMF 321 as long as the temp ID is valid. The NG-RAN 310 isaware of, and can reach, the AMF 321 that is associated with the tempID. Otherwise, the method for initial attach applies.

The NG-RAN 310 supports resource isolation between slices. NG-RAN 310resource isolation may be achieved by means of RRM policies andprotection mechanisms that should avoid that shortage of sharedresources if one slice breaks the service level agreement for anotherslice. In some implementations, it is possible to fully dedicate NG-RAN310 resources to a certain slice. How NG-RAN 310 supports resourceisolation is implementation dependent.

Some slices may be available only in part of the network. Awareness inthe NG-RAN 310 of the slices supported in the cells of its neighbors maybe beneficial for inter-frequency mobility in connected mode. The sliceavailability may not change within the UE's registration area. TheNG-RAN 310 and the 5GC 320 are responsible to handle a service requestfor a slice that may or may not be available in a given area. Admissionor rejection of access to a slice may depend on factors such as supportfor the slice, availability of resources, support of the requestedservice by NG-RAN 310.

The UE 301 may be associated with multiple network slicessimultaneously. In case the UE 301 is associated with multiple slicessimultaneously, only one signaling connection is maintained, and forintra-frequency cell reselection, the UE 301 tries to camp on the bestcell. For inter-frequency cell reselection, dedicated priorities can beused to control the frequency on which the UE 301 camps. The 5GC 320 isto validate that the UE 301 has the rights to access a network slice.Prior to receiving an Initial Context Setup Request message, the NG-RAN310 may be allowed to apply some provisional/local policies, based onawareness of a particular slice that the UE 301 is requesting to access.During the initial context setup, the NG-RAN 310 is informed of theslice for which resources are being requested.

NFV architectures and infrastructures may be used to virtualize one ormore NFs, alternatively performed by proprietary hardware, onto physicalresources comprising a combination of industry-standard server hardware,storage hardware, or switches. In other words, NFV systems can be usedto execute virtual or reconfigurable implementations of one or more EPCcomponents/functions.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating components, according to someexample embodiments, of a system 900 to support NFV. The system 900 isillustrated as including a VIM 902, an NFVI 904, an VNFM 906, VNFs 908,an EM 910, an NFVO 912, and a NM 914.

The VIM 902 manages the resources of the NFVI 904. The NFVI 904 caninclude physical or virtual resources and applications (includinghypervisors) used to execute the system 900. The VIM 902 may manage thelife cycle of virtual resources with the NFVI 904 (e.g., creation,maintenance, and tear down of VMs associated with one or more physicalresources), track VM instances, track performance, fault and security ofVM instances and associated physical resources, and expose VM instancesand associated physical resources to other management systems.

The VNFM 906 may manage the VNFs 908. The VNFs 908 may be used toexecute EPC components/functions. The VNFM 906 may manage the life cycleof the VNFs 908 and track performance, fault and security of the virtualaspects of VNFs 908. The EM 910 may track the performance, fault andsecurity of the functional aspects of VNFs 908. The tracking data fromthe VNFM 906 and the EM 910 may comprise, for example, PM data used bythe VIM 902 or the NFVI 904. Both the VNFM 906 and the EM 910 can scaleup/down the quantity of VNFs of the system 900.

The NFVO 912 may coordinate, authorize, release and engage resources ofthe NFVI 904 in order to provide the requested service (e.g., to executean EPC function, component, or slice). The NM 914 may provide a packageof end-user functions with the responsibility for the management of anetwork, which may include network elements with VNFs, non-virtualizednetwork functions, or both (management of the VNFs may occur via the EM910).

FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating components, according to someexample embodiments, able to read instructions from a machine-readableor computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readablestorage medium) and perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein. Specifically, FIG. 10 shows a diagrammaticrepresentation of hardware resources 1000 including one or moreprocessors (or processor cores) 1010, one or more memory/storage devices1020, and one or more communication resources 1030, each of which may becommunicatively coupled via a bus 1040. For embodiments where nodevirtualization (e.g., NFV) is utilized, a hypervisor 1002 may beexecuted to provide an execution environment for one or more networkslices/sub-slices to utilize the hardware resources 1000.

The processors 1010 may include, for example, a processor 1012 and aprocessor 1014. The processor(s) 1010 may be, for example, a centralprocessing unit (CPU), a reduced instruction set computing (RISC)processor, a complex instruction set computing (CISC) processor, agraphics processing unit (GPU), a DSP such as a baseband processor, anASIC, an FPGA, a radio-frequency integrated circuit (RFIC), anotherprocessor (including those discussed herein), or any suitablecombination thereof.

The memory/storage devices 1020 may include main memory, disk storage,or any suitable combination thereof. The memory/storage devices 1020 mayinclude, but are not limited to, any type of volatile or nonvolatilememory such as dynamic random access memory (DRAM), static random accessmemory (SRAM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM),electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), Flashmemory, solid-state storage, etc.

The communication resources 1030 may include interconnection or networkinterface components or other suitable devices to communicate with oneor more peripheral devices 1004 or one or more databases 1006 via anetwork 1008. For example, the communication resources 1030 may includewired communication components (e.g., for coupling via USB), cellularcommunication components, NFC components, Bluetooth® (or Bluetooth® LowEnergy) components, Wi-Fi® components, and other communicationcomponents.

Instructions 1050 may comprise software, a program, an application, anapplet, an app, or other executable code for causing at least any of theprocessors 1010 to perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein. The instructions 1050 may reside, completely orpartially, within at least one of the processors 1010 (e.g., within theprocessor's cache memory), the memory/storage devices 1020, or anysuitable combination thereof. Furthermore, any portion of theinstructions 1050 may be transferred to the hardware resources 1000 fromany combination of the peripheral devices 1004 or the databases 1006.Accordingly, the memory of processors 1010, the memory/storage devices1020, the peripheral devices 1004, and the databases 1006 are examplesof computer-readable and machine-readable media.

For one or more embodiments, at least one of the components set forth inone or more of the preceding figures may be configured to perform one ormore operations, techniques, processes, and/or methods as set forth inthe example section below. For example, the baseband circuitry asdescribed above in connection with one or more of the preceding figuresmay be configured to operate in accordance with one or more of theexamples set forth below. For another example, circuitry associated witha UE, base station, network element, etc. as described above inconnection with one or more of the preceding figures may be configuredto operate in accordance with one or more of the examples set forthbelow in the example section.

Examples

Example 1 may include the system and method of the design of DL channelquality reporting in connected mode for eMTC using the same qualityreporting definition as in Msg3.

Example 2 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein it is UE capability to support the DL quality report inconnected mode.

Example 3 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein the UE supporting idle mode DL quality report in Msg3supports similar DL quality report in connected mode.

Example 4 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein the DL quality report in connected mode can beconfigured by UE specific RRC signaling.

Example 5 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein the quality report can be carried in PUSCH.

Example 6 may include the method of example 5 or some other exampleherein, wherein RRC message or MAC CE can be used for the DL qualityreport.

Example 7 may include the method of example 5 or some other exampleherein, wherein the report can be carried similar to the aperiodic CSIreport in legacy system.

Example 8 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein reserved bit ‘R’ in RAR can be used to trigger thereport in Msg3 in response to PDCCH ordered RACH.

Example 9 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein quality report can be sent if the scheduled TBS is largeenough.

Example 10 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein the CSI request field in UL grant can be used to triggerthe DL quality report.

Example 11 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein the DCI can be extended to add 1 bit for the trigger ofDL quality report in connected mode.

Example 12 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein the measurement reference resource is not defined.

Example 13 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein the measurement reference resource similar to thatdefined for CQI report in legacy eMTC system can be defined.

Example 14 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein existing UEAssistanceInformation message in UL DCCH canbe used.

Example 15 may include the method of example 1 or some other exampleherein, wherein a threshold can be defined which determines when toreport the message.

Example 16 may include an apparatus comprising means to perform one ormore elements of a method described in or related to any of examples1-15, or any other method or process described herein.

Example 17 may include one or more non-transitory computer-readablemedia comprising instructions to cause an electronic device, uponexecution of the instructions by one or more processors of theelectronic device, to perform one or more elements of a method describedin or related to any of examples 1-15, or any other method or processdescribed herein.

Example 18 may include an apparatus comprising logic, modules, orcircuitry to perform one or more elements of a method described in orrelated to any of examples 1-15, or any other method or processdescribed herein.

Example 19 may include a method, technique, or process as described inor related to any of examples 1-15, or portions or parts thereof.

Example 20 may include an apparatus comprising: one or more processorsand one or more computer-readable media comprising instructions that,when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or moreprocessors to perform the method, techniques, or process as described inor related to any of examples 1-15, or portions thereof.

Example 21 may include a signal as described in or related to any ofexamples 1-15, or portions or parts thereof.

Example 22 may include a signal in a wireless network as shown anddescribed herein.

Example 23 may include a method of communicating in a wireless networkas shown and described herein.

Example 24 may include a system for providing wireless communication asshown and described herein.

Example 25 may include a device for providing wireless communication asshown and described herein.

Any of the above-described examples may be combined with any otherexample (or combination of examples), unless explicitly statedotherwise. The foregoing description of one or more implementationsprovides illustration and description, but is not intended to beexhaustive or to limit the scope of embodiments to the precise formdisclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of theabove teachings or may be acquired from practice of various embodiments.

Abbreviations

For the purposes of the present document, the following abbreviationsmay apply to the examples and embodiments discussed herein.

-   -   3GPP Third Generation Partnership Project    -   4G Fourth Generation    -   5G Fifth Generation    -   5GC 5G Core network    -   ACK Acknowledgement    -   AF Application Function    -   AM Acknowledged Mode    -   AMBR Aggregate Maximum Bit Rate    -   AMF Access and Mobility Management Function    -   AN Access Network    -   ANR Automatic Neighbour Relation    -   AP Application Protocol, Antenna Port, Access Point    -   API Application Programming Interface    -   APN Access Point Name    -   ARP Allocation and Retention Priority    -   ARQ Automatic Repeat Request    -   AS Access Stratum    -   ASN.1 Abstract Syntax Notation One    -   AUSF Authentication Server Function    -   AWGN Additive White Gaussian Noise    -   BCH Broadcast Channel    -   BER Bit Error Ratio    -   BFD Beam Failure Detection    -   BLER Block Error Rate    -   BPSK Binary Phase Shift Keying    -   BRAS Broadband Remote Access Server    -   BSS Business Support System    -   BS Base Station    -   BSR Buffer Status Report    -   BW Bandwidth    -   BWP Bandwidth Part    -   C-RNTI Cell Radio Network Temporary Identity    -   CA Carrier Aggregation, Certification Authority    -   CAPEX CAPital EXpenditure    -   CBRA Contention Based Random Access    -   CC Component Carrier, Country Code, Cryptographic Checksum    -   CCA Clear Channel Assessment    -   CCE Control Channel Element    -   CCCH Common Control Channel    -   CE Coverage Enhancement    -   CDM Content Delivery Network    -   CDMA Code-Division Multiple Access    -   CFRA Contention Free Random Access    -   CG Cell Group    -   CI Cell Identity    -   CID Cell-ID (e.g., positioning method)    -   CIM Common Information Model    -   CIR Carrier to Interference Ratio    -   CK Cipher Key    -   CM Connection Management, Conditional Mandatory    -   CMAS Commercial Mobile Alert Service    -   CMD Command    -   CMS Cloud Management System    -   CO Conditional Optional    -   CoMP Coordinated Multi-Point    -   CORESET Control Resource Set    -   COTS Commercial Off-The-Shelf    -   CP Control Plane, Cyclic Prefix, Connection Point    -   CPD Connection Point Descriptor    -   CPE Customer Premise Equipment    -   CPICH Common Pilot Channel    -   CQI Channel Quality Indicator    -   CPU CSI processing unit, Central Processing Unit    -   C/R Command/Response field bit    -   CRAN Cloud Radio Access Network, Cloud RAN    -   CRB Common Resource Block    -   CRC Cyclic Redundancy Check    -   CRI Channel-State Information Resource Indicator, CSI-RS        Resource Indicator    -   C-RNTI Cell RNTI    -   CS Circuit Switched    -   CSAR Cloud Service Archive    -   CSI Channel-State Information    -   CSI-IM CSI Interference Measurement    -   CSI-RS CSI Reference Signal    -   CSI-RSRP CSI reference signal received power    -   CSI-RSRQ CSI reference signal received quality    -   CSI-SINR CSI signal-to-noise and interference ratio    -   CSMA Carrier Sense Multiple Access    -   CSMA/CA CSMA with collision avoidance    -   CSS Common Search Space, Cell-specific Search Space    -   CTS Clear-to-Send    -   CW Codeword    -   CWS Contention Window Size    -   D2D Device-to-Device    -   DC Dual Connectivity, Direct Current    -   DCI Downlink Control Information    -   DF Deployment Flavour    -   DL Downlink    -   DMTF Distributed Management Task Force    -   DPDK Data Plane Development Kit    -   DM-RS, DMRS Demodulation Reference Signal    -   DN Data network    -   DRB Data Radio Bearer    -   DRS Discovery Reference Signal    -   DRX Discontinuous Reception    -   DSL Domain Specific Language. Digital Subscriber Line    -   DSLAM DSL Access Multiplexer    -   DwPTS Downlink Pilot Time Slot    -   E-LAN Ethernet Local Area Network    -   E2E End-to-End    -   ECCA extended clear channel assessment, extended CCA    -   ECCE Enhanced Control Channel Element, Enhanced CCE    -   ED Energy Detection    -   EDGE Enhanced Datarates for GSM Evolution (GSM Evolution)    -   EGMF Exposure Governance Management Function    -   EGPRS Enhanced GPRS    -   EIR Equipment Identity Register    -   eLAA enhanced Licensed Assisted Access, enhanced LAA    -   EM Element Manager    -   eMBB Enhanced Mobile Broadband    -   EMS Element Management System    -   eNB evolved NodeB, E-UTRAN Node B    -   EN-DC E-UTRA-NR Dual Connectivity    -   EPC Evolved Packet Core    -   EPDCCH enhanced PDCCH, enhanced Physical Downlink Control Cannel    -   EPRE Energy per resource element    -   EPS Evolved Packet System    -   EREG enhanced REG, enhanced resource element groups    -   ETSI European Telecommunications Standards Institute    -   ETWS Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System    -   eUICC embedded UICC, embedded Universal Integrated Circuit Card    -   E-UTRA Evolved UTRA    -   E-UTRAN Evolved UTRAN    -   EV2X Enhanced V2X    -   F1AP F1 Application Protocol    -   F1-C F1 Control plane interface    -   F1-U F1 User plane interface    -   FACCH Fast Associated Control CHannel    -   FACCH/F Fast Associated Control Channel/Full rate    -   FACCH/H Fast Associated Control Channel/Half rate    -   FACH Forward Access Channel    -   FAUSCH Fast Uplink Signalling Channel    -   FB Functional Block    -   FBI Feedback Information    -   FCC Federal Communications Commission    -   FCCH Frequency Correction CHannel    -   FDD Frequency Division Duplex    -   FDM Frequency Division Multiplex    -   FDMA Frequency Division Multiple Access    -   FE Front End    -   FEC Forward Error Correction    -   FFS For Further Study    -   FFT Fast Fourier Transformation    -   feLAA further enhanced Licensed Assisted Access, further        enhanced LAA    -   FN Frame Number    -   FPGA Field-Programmable Gate Array    -   FR Frequency Range    -   G-RNTI GERAN Radio Network Temporary Identity    -   GERAN GSM EDGE RAN, GSM EDGE Radio Access Network    -   GGSN Gateway GPRS Support Node    -   GLONASS GLObal'naya NAvigatsionnaya Sputnikovaya Sistema (Engl.:        Global Navigation Satellite System)    -   gNB Next Generation NodeB    -   gNB-CU gNB-centralized unit, Next Generation NodeB centralized        unit    -   gNB-DU gNB-distributed unit, Next Generation NodeB distributed        unit    -   GNSS Global Navigation Satellite System    -   GPRS General Packet Radio Service    -   GSM Global System for Mobile Communications, Groupe Spécial        Mobile    -   GTP GPRS Tunneling Protocol    -   GTP-U GPRS Tunnelling Protocol for User Plane    -   GTS Go To Sleep Signal (related to WUS)    -   GUMMEI Globally Unique MME Identifier    -   GUTI Globally Unique Temporary UE Identity    -   HARQ Hybrid ARQ, Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request    -   HANDO, HO Handover    -   HFN HyperFrame Number    -   HHO Hard Handover    -   HLR Home Location Register    -   HN Home Network    -   HO Handover    -   HPLMN Home Public Land Mobile Network    -   HSDPA High Speed Downlink Packet Access    -   HSN Hopping Sequence Number    -   HSPA High Speed Packet Access    -   HSS Home Subscriber Server    -   HSUPA High Speed Uplink Packet Access    -   HTTP Hyper Text Transfer Protocol    -   HTTPS Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure (https is http/1.1        over SSL, i.e. port 443)    -   I-Block Information Block    -   ICCID Integrated Circuit Card Identification    -   ICIC Inter-Cell Interference Coordination    -   ID Identity, identifier    -   IDFT Inverse Discrete Fourier Transform    -   IE Information element    -   IBE In-Band Emission    -   IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers    -   IEI Information Element Identifier    -   IEIDL Information Element Identifier Data Length    -   IETF Internet Engineering Task Force    -   IF Infrastructure    -   IM Interference Measurement, Intermodulation, IP Multimedia    -   IMC IMS Credentials    -   IMEI International Mobile Equipment Identity    -   IMGI International mobile group identity    -   IMPI IP Multimedia Private Identity    -   IMPU IP Multimedia PUblic identity    -   IMS IP Multimedia Subsystem    -   IMSI International Mobile Subscriber Identity    -   IoT Internet of Things    -   IP Internet Protocol    -   Ipsec IP Security, Internet Protocol Security    -   IP-CAN IP-Connectivity Access Network    -   IP-M IP Multicast    -   IPv4 Internet Protocol Version 4    -   IPv6 Internet Protocol Version 6    -   IR Infrared    -   IS In Sync    -   IRP Integration Reference Point    -   ISDN Integrated Services Digital Network    -   ISIM IM Services Identity Module    -   ISO International Organisation for Standardisation    -   ISP Internet Service Provider    -   IWF Interworking-Function    -   I-WLAN Interworking WLAN    -   K Constraint length of the convolutional code, USIM Individual        key    -   kB Kilobyte (1000 bytes)    -   kbps kilo-bits per second    -   Kc Ciphering key    -   Ki Individual subscriber authentication key    -   KPI Key Performance Indicator    -   KQI Key Quality Indicator    -   KSI Key Set Identifier    -   ksps kilo-symbols per second    -   KVM Kernel Virtual Machine    -   L1 Layer 1 (physical layer)    -   L1-RSRP Layer 1 reference signal received power    -   L2 Layer 2 (data link layer)    -   L3 Layer 3 (network layer)    -   LAA Licensed Assisted Access    -   LAN Local Area Network    -   LBT Listen Before Talk    -   LCM LifeCycle Management    -   LCR Low Chip Rate    -   LCS Location Services    -   LCID Logical Channel ID    -   LI Layer Indicator    -   LLC Logical Link Control, Low Layer Compatibility    -   LPLMN Local PLMN    -   LPP LTE Positioning Protocol    -   LSB Least Significant Bit    -   LTE Long Term Evolution    -   LWA LTE-WLAN aggregation    -   LWIP LTE/WLAN Radio Level Integration with IPsec Tunnel    -   LTE Long Term Evolution    -   M2M Machine-to-Machine    -   MAC Medium Access Control (protocol layering context)    -   MAC Message authentication code (security/encryption context)    -   MAC-A MAC used for authentication and key agreement (TSG T WG3        context)    -   MAC-I MAC used for data integrity of signalling messages (TSG T        WG3 context)    -   MANO Management and Orchestration    -   MBMS Multimedia Broadcast and Multicast Service    -   MBSFN Multimedia Broadcast multicast service Single Frequency        Network    -   MCC Mobile Country Code    -   MCG Master Cell Group    -   MCOT Maximum Channel Occupancy Time    -   MCS Modulation and coding scheme    -   MDAF Management Data Analytics Function    -   MDAS Management Data Analytics Service    -   MDT Minimization of Drive Tests    -   ME Mobile Equipment    -   MeNB master eNB    -   MER Message Error Ratio    -   MGL Measurement Gap Length    -   MGRP Measurement Gap Repetition Period    -   MIB Master Information Block, Management Information Base    -   MIMO Multiple Input Multiple Output    -   MLC Mobile Location Centre    -   MM Mobility Management    -   MME Mobility Management Entity    -   MN Master Node    -   MO Measurement Object, Mobile Originated    -   MPBCH MTC Physical Broadcast CHannel    -   MPDCCH MTC Physical Downlink Control CHannel    -   MPDSCH MTC Physical Downlink Shared CHannel    -   MPRACH MTC Physical Random Access CHannel    -   MPUSCH MTC Physical Uplink Shared Channel    -   MPLS MultiProtocol Label Switching    -   MS Mobile Station    -   MSB Most Significant Bit    -   MSC Mobile Switching Centre    -   MSI Minimum System Information, MCH Scheduling Information    -   MSID Mobile Station Identifier    -   MSIN Mobile Station Identification Number    -   MSISDN Mobile Subscriber ISDN Number    -   MT Mobile Terminated, Mobile Termination    -   MTC Machine-Type Communications    -   mMTC massive MTC, massive Machine-Type Communications    -   MU-MIAMO Multi User MIMO    -   MWUS MTC wake-up signal, MTC WUS    -   NACK Negative Acknowledgement    -   NAI Network Access Identifier    -   NAS Non-Access Stratum, Non-Access Stratum layer    -   NCT Network Connectivity Topology    -   NEC Network Capability Exposure    -   NE-DC NR-E-UTRA Dual Connectivity    -   NEF Network Exposure Function    -   NF Network Function    -   NFP Network Forwarding Path    -   NFPD Network Forwarding Path Descriptor    -   NFV Network Functions Virtualization    -   NFVI NFV Infrastructure    -   NFVO NFV Orchestrator    -   NG Next Generation, Next Gen    -   NGEN-DC NG-RAN E-UTRA-NR Dual Connectivity    -   NM Network Manager    -   NMS Network Management System    -   N-PoP Network Point of Presence    -   NMIB, N-MIB Narrowband MIB    -   NPBCH Narrowband Physical Broadcast CHannel    -   NPDCCH Narrowband Physical Downlink Control CHannel    -   NPDSCH Narrowband Physical Downlink Shared CHannel    -   NPRACH Narrowband Physical Random Access CHannel    -   NPUSCH Narrowband Physical Uplink Shared CHannel    -   NPSS Narrowband Primary Synchronization Signal    -   NSSS Narrowband Secondary Synchronization Signal    -   NR New Radio, Neighbour Relation    -   NRF NF Repository Function    -   NRS Narrowband Reference Signal    -   NS Network Service    -   NSA Non-Standalone operation mode    -   NSD Network Service Descriptor    -   NSR Network Service Record    -   NSSAI ‘Network Slice Selection Assistance Information    -   S-NNSAI Single-NSSAI    -   NSSF Network Slice Selection Function    -   NW Network    -   NWUS Narrowband wake-up signal, Narrowband WUS    -   NZP Non-Zero Power    -   O&M Operation and Maintenance    -   ODU2 Optical channel Data Unit—type 2    -   OFDM Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing    -   OFDMA Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access    -   OOB Out-of-band    -   OOS Out of Sync    -   OPEX OPerating EXpense    -   OSI Other System Information    -   OSS Operations Support System    -   OTA over-the-air    -   PAPR Peak-to-Average Power Ratio    -   PAR Peak to Average Ratio    -   PBCH Physical Broadcast Channel    -   PC Power Control, Personal Computer    -   PCC Primary Component Carrier, Primary CC    -   PCell Primary Cell    -   PCI Physical Cell ID, Physical Cell Identity    -   PCEF Policy and Charging Enforcement Function    -   PCF Policy Control Function    -   PCRF Policy Control and Charging Rules Function    -   PDCP Packet Data Convergence Protocol, Packet Data Convergence        Protocol layer    -   PDCCH Physical Downlink Control Channel    -   PDCP Packet Data Convergence Protocol    -   PDN Packet Data Network, Public Data Network    -   PDSCH Physical Downlink Shared Channel    -   PDU Protocol Data Unit    -   PEI Permanent Equipment Identifiers    -   PFD Packet Flow Description    -   P-GW PDN Gateway    -   PHICH Physical hybrid-ARQ indicator channel    -   PHY Physical layer    -   PLMN Public Land Mobile Network    -   PIN Personal Identification Number    -   PM Performance Measurement    -   PMI Precoding Matrix Indicator    -   PNF Physical Network Function    -   PNFD Physical Network Function Descriptor    -   PNFR Physical Network Function Record    -   POC PTT over Cellular    -   PP, PTP Point-to-Point    -   PPP Point-to-Point Protocol    -   PRACH Physical RACH    -   PRB Physical resource block    -   PRG Physical resource block group    -   ProSe Proximity Services, Proximity-Based Service    -   PRS Positioning Reference Signal    -   PRR Packet Reception Radio    -   PS Packet Services    -   PSBCH Physical Sidelink Broadcast Channel    -   PSDCH Physical Sidelink Downlink Channel    -   PSCCH Physical Sidelink Control Channel    -   PSSCH Physical Sidelink Shared Channel    -   PSCell Primary SCell    -   PSS Primary Synchronization Signal    -   PSTN Public Switched Telephone Network    -   PT-RS Phase-tracking reference signal    -   PTT Push-to-Talk    -   PUCCH Physical Uplink Control Channel    -   PUSCH Physical Uplink Shared Channel    -   QAM Quadrature Amplitude Modulation    -   QCI QoS class of identifier    -   QCL Quasi co-location    -   QFI QoS Flow ID, QoS Flow Identifier    -   QoS Quality of Service    -   QPSK Quadrature (Quaternary) Phase Shift Keying    -   QZSS Quasi-Zenith Satellite System    -   RA-RNTI Random Access RNTI    -   RAB Radio Access Bearer, Random Access Burst    -   RACH Random Access Channel    -   RADIUS Remote Authentication Dial In User Service    -   RAN Radio Access Network    -   RAND RANDom number (used for authentication)    -   RAR Random Access Response    -   RAT Radio Access Technology    -   RAU Routing Area Update    -   RB Resource block, Radio Bearer    -   RBG Resource block group    -   REG Resource Element Group    -   Rel Release    -   REQ REQuest    -   RF Radio Frequency    -   RI Rank Indicator    -   RIV Resource indicator value    -   RL Radio Link    -   RLC Radio Link Control, Radio Link Control layer    -   RLC AM RLC Acknowledged Mode    -   RLC UM RLC Unacknowledged Mode    -   RLF Radio Link Failure    -   RLM Radio Link Monitoring    -   RLM-RS Reference Signal for RLM    -   RM Registration Management    -   RMC Reference Measurement Channel    -   RMSI Remaining MSI, Remaining Minimum System Information    -   RN Relay Node    -   RNC Radio Network Controller    -   RNL Radio Network Layer    -   RNTI Radio Network Temporary Identifier    -   ROHC RObust Header Compression    -   RRC Radio Resource Control, Radio Resource Control layer    -   RRM Radio Resource Management    -   RS Reference Signal    -   RSRP Reference Signal Received Power    -   RSRQ Reference Signal Received Quality    -   RSSI Received Signal Strength Indicator    -   RSU Road Side Unit    -   RSTD Reference Signal Time difference    -   RTP Real Time Protocol    -   RTS Ready-To-Send    -   RTT Round Trip Time    -   Rx Reception, Receiving, Receiver    -   S1AP S1 Application Protocol    -   S1-MME S1 for the control plane    -   S1-U S1 for the user plane    -   S-GW Serving Gateway    -   S-RNTI SRNC Radio Network Temporary Identity    -   S-TMSI SAE Temporary Mobile Station Identifier    -   SA Standalone operation mode    -   SAE System Architecture Evolution    -   SAP Service Access Point    -   SAPD Service Access Point Descriptor    -   SAPI Service Access Point Identifier    -   SCC Secondary Component Carrier, Secondary CC    -   SCell Secondary Cell    -   SC-FDMA Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access    -   SCG Secondary Cell Group    -   SCM Security Context Management    -   SCS Subcarrier Spacing    -   SCTP Stream Control Transmission Protocol    -   SDAP Service Data Adaptation Protocol, Service Data Adaptation        Protocol layer    -   SDL Supplementary Downlink    -   SDNF Structured Data Storage Network Function    -   SDP Session Description Protocol    -   SDSF Structured Data Storage Function    -   SDU Service Data Unit    -   SEAF Security Anchor Function    -   SeNB secondary eNB    -   SEPP Security Edge Protection Proxy    -   SFI Slot format indication    -   SFTD Space-Frequency Time Diversity, SFN and frame timing        difference    -   SFN System Frame Number    -   SgNB Secondary gNB    -   SGSN Serving GPRS Support Node    -   S-GW Serving Gateway    -   SI System Information    -   SI-RNTI System Information RNTI    -   SIB System Information Block    -   SIM Subscriber Identity Module    -   SIP Session Initiated Protocol    -   SiP System in Package    -   SL Sidelink    -   SLA Service Level Agreement    -   SM Session Management    -   SMF Session Management Function    -   SMS Short Message Service    -   SMSF SMS Function    -   SMTC SSB-based Measurement Timing Configuration    -   SN Secondary Node, Sequence Number    -   SoC System on Chip    -   SON Self-Organizing Network    -   SpCell Special Cell    -   SP-CSI-RNTI Semi-Persistent CSI RNTI    -   SPS Semi-Persistent Scheduling    -   SQN Sequence number    -   SR Scheduling Request    -   SRB Signalling Radio Bearer    -   SRS Sounding Reference Signal    -   SS Synchronization Signal    -   SSB Synchronization Signal Block, SS/PBCH Block    -   SSBRI SS/PBCH Block Resource Indicator, Synchronization Signal        Block Resource Indicator    -   SSC Session and Service Continuity    -   SS-RSRP Synchronization Signal based Reference Signal Received        Power    -   SS-RSRQ Synchronization Signal based Reference Signal Received        Quality    -   SS-SINR Synchronization Signal based Signal to Noise and        Interference Ratio    -   SSS Secondary Synchronization Signal    -   SSSG Search Space Set Group    -   SSSIF Search Space Set Indicator    -   SST Slice/Service Types    -   SU-MIMO Single User MIMO    -   SUL Supplementary Uplink    -   TA Timing Advance, Tracking Area    -   TAC Tracking Area Code    -   TAG Timing Advance Group    -   TAU Tracking Area Update    -   TB Transport Block    -   TBS Transport Block Size    -   TBD To Be Defined    -   TCI Transmission Configuration Indicator    -   TCP Transmission Communication Protocol    -   TDD Time Division Duplex    -   TDM Time Division Multiplexing    -   TDMA Time Division Multiple Access    -   TE Terminal Equipment    -   TEID Tunnel End Point Identifier    -   TFT Traffic Flow Template    -   TMSI Temporary Mobile Subscriber Identity    -   TNL Transport Network Layer    -   TPC Transmit Power Control    -   TPMI Transmitted Precoding Matrix Indicator    -   TR Technical Report    -   TRP, TRxP Transmission Reception Point    -   TRS Tracking Reference Signal    -   TRx Transceiver    -   TS Technical Specifications, Technical Standard    -   TTI Transmission Time Interval    -   Tx Transmission, Transmitting, Transmitter    -   U-RNTI UTRAN Radio Network Temporary Identity    -   UART Universal Asynchronous Receiver and Transmitter    -   UCI Uplink Control Information    -   UE User Equipment    -   UDM Unified Data Management    -   UDP User Datagram Protocol    -   UDSF Unstructured Data Storage Network Function    -   UICC Universal Integrated Circuit Card    -   UL Uplink    -   UM Unacknowledged Mode    -   UML Unified Modelling Language    -   UMTS Universal Mobile Telecommunications System    -   UP User Plane    -   UPF User Plane Function    -   URI Uniform Resource Identifier    -   URL Uniform Resource Locator    -   URLLC Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency    -   USB Universal Serial Bus    -   USIM Universal Subscriber Identity Module    -   USS UE-specific search space    -   UTRA UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access    -   UTRAN Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network    -   UwPTS Uplink Pilot Time Slot    -   V2I Vehicle-to-Infrastruction    -   V2P Vehicle-to-Pedestrian    -   V2V Vehicle-to-Vehicle    -   V2X Vehicle-to-everything    -   VIM Virtualized Infrastructure Manager    -   VL Virtual Link,    -   VLAN Virtual LAN, Virtual Local Area Network    -   VM Virtual Machine    -   VNF Virtualized Network Function    -   VNFFG VNF Forwarding Graph    -   VNFFGD VNF Forwarding Graph Descriptor    -   VNFM VNF Manager    -   VoIP Voice-over-IP, Voice-over-Internet Protocol    -   VPLMN Visited Public Land Mobile Network    -   VPN Virtual Private Network    -   VRB Virtual Resource Block    -   WiMAX Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access    -   WLAN Wireless Local Area Network    -   WMAN Wireless Metropolitan Area Network    -   WPAN Wireless Personal Area Network    -   X2-C X2-Control plane    -   X2-U X2-User plane    -   XML eXtensible Markup Language    -   XRES EXpected user RESponse    -   XOR eXclusive OR    -   ZC Zadoff-Chu    -   ZP Zero Power

Terminology

For the purposes of the present document, the following terms anddefinitions are applicable to the examples and embodiments discussedherein.

The term “circuitry” as used herein refers to, is part of, or includeshardware components such as an electronic circuit, a logic circuit, aprocessor (shared, dedicated, or group) and/or memory (shared,dedicated, or group), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC),a field-programmable device (FPD) (e.g., a field-programmable gate array(FPGA), a programmable logic device (PLD), a complex PLD (CPLD), ahigh-capacity PLD (HCPLD), a structured ASIC, or a programmable SoC),digital signal processors (DSPs), etc., that are configured to providethe described functionality. In some embodiments, the circuitry mayexecute one or more software or firmware programs to provide at leastsome of the described functionality. The term “circuitry” may also referto a combination of one or more hardware elements (or a combination ofcircuits used in an electrical or electronic system) with the programcode used to carry out the functionality of that program code. In theseembodiments, the combination of hardware elements and program code maybe referred to as a particular type of circuitry.

The term “processor circuitry” as used herein refers to, is part of, orincludes circuitry capable of sequentially and automatically carryingout a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations, or recording,storing, and/or transferring digital data. The term “processorcircuitry” may refer to one or more application processors, one or morebaseband processors, a physical central processing unit (CPU), asingle-core processor, a dual-core processor, a triple-core processor, aquad-core processor, and/or any other device capable of executing orotherwise operating computer-executable instructions, such as programcode, software modules, and/or functional processes. The terms“application circuitry” and/or “baseband circuitry” may be consideredsynonymous to, and may be referred to as, “processor circuitry.”

The term “interface circuitry” as used herein refers to, is part of, orincludes circuitry that enables the exchange of information between twoor more components or devices. The term “interface circuitry” may referto one or more hardware interfaces, for example, buses, I/O interfaces,peripheral component interfaces, network interface cards, and/or thelike.

The term “user equipment” or “UE” as used herein refers to a device withradio communication capabilities and may describe a remote user ofnetwork resources in a communications network. The term “user equipment”or “UE” may be considered synonymous to, and may be referred to as,client, mobile, mobile device, mobile terminal, user terminal, mobileunit, mobile station, mobile user, subscriber, user, remote station,access agent, user agent, receiver, radio equipment, reconfigurableradio equipment, reconfigurable mobile device, etc. Furthermore, theterm “user equipment” or “UE” may include any type of wireless/wireddevice or any computing device including a wireless communicationsinterface.

The term “network element” as used herein refers to physical orvirtualized equipment and/or infrastructure used to provide wired orwireless communication network services. The term “network element” maybe considered synonymous to and/or referred to as a networked computer,networking hardware, network equipment, network node, router, switch,hub, bridge, radio network controller, RAN device, RAN node, gateway,server, virtualized VNF, NFVI, and/or the like.

The term “computer system” as used herein refers to any typeinterconnected electronic devices, computer devices, or componentsthereof. Additionally, the term “computer system” and/or “system” mayrefer to various components of a computer that are communicativelycoupled with one another. Furthermore, the term “computer system” and/or“system” may refer to multiple computer devices and/or multiplecomputing systems that are communicatively coupled with one another andconfigured to share computing and/or networking resources.

The term “appliance,” “computer appliance,” or the like, as used hereinrefers to a computer device or computer system with program code (e.g.,software or firmware) that is specifically designed to provide aspecific computing resource. A “virtual appliance” is a virtual machineimage to be implemented by a hypervisor-equipped device that virtualizesor emulates a computer appliance or otherwise is dedicated to provide aspecific computing resource.

The term “resource” as used herein refers to a physical or virtualdevice, a physical or virtual component within a computing environment,and/or a physical or virtual component within a particular device, suchas computer devices, mechanical devices, memory space, processor/CPUtime, processor/CPU usage, processor and accelerator loads, hardwaretime or usage, electrical power, input/output operations, ports ornetwork sockets, channel/link allocation, throughput, memory usage,storage, network, database and applications, workload units, and/or thelike. A “hardware resource” may refer to compute, storage, and/ornetwork resources provided by physical hardware element(s). A“virtualized resource” may refer to compute, storage, and/or networkresources provided by virtualization infrastructure to an application,device, system, etc. The term “network resource” or “communicationresource” may refer to resources that are accessible by computerdevices/systems via a communications network. The term “systemresources” may refer to any kind of shared entities to provide services,and may include computing and/or network resources. System resources maybe considered as a set of coherent functions, network data objects orservices, accessible through a server where such system resources resideon a single host or multiple hosts and are clearly identifiable.

The term “channel” as used herein refers to any transmission medium,either tangible or intangible, which is used to communicate data or adata stream. The term “channel” may be synonymous with and/or equivalentto “communications channel,” “data communications channel,”“transmission channel,” “data transmission channel,” “access channel,”“data access channel,” “link,” “data link,” “carrier,” “radiofrequencycarrier,” and/or any other like term denoting a pathway or mediumthrough which data is communicated. Additionally, the term “link” asused herein refers to a connection between two devices through a RAT forthe purpose of transmitting and receiving information.

The terms “instantiate,” “instantiation,” and the like as used hereinrefers to the creation of an instance. An “instance” also refers to aconcrete occurrence of an object, which may occur, for example, duringexecution of program code.

The terms “coupled,” “communicatively coupled,” along with derivativesthereof are used herein. The term “coupled” may mean two or moreelements are in direct physical or electrical contact with one another,may mean that two or more elements indirectly contact each other butstill cooperate or interact with each other, and/or may mean that one ormore other elements are coupled or connected between the elements thatare said to be coupled with each other. The term “directly coupled” maymean that two or more elements are in direct contact with one another.The term “communicatively coupled” may mean that two or more elementsmay be in contact with one another by a means of communication includingthrough a wire or other interconnect connection, through a wirelesscommunication channel or ink, and/or the like.

The term “information element” refers to a structural element containingone or more fields. The term “field” refers to individual contents of aninformation element, or a data element that contains content.

The term “SMTC” refers to an SSB-based measurement timing configurationconfigured by SSB-MeasuremeniTimingConfiguration.

The term “SSB” refers to an SS/PBCH block.

The term “a “Primary Cell” refers to the MCG cell, operating on theprimary frequency, in which the UE either performs the initialconnection establishment procedure or initiates the connectionre-establishment procedure.

The term “Primary SCG Cell” refers to the SCG cell in which the UEperforms random access when performing the Reconfiguration with Syncprocedure for DC operation.

The term “Secondary Cell” refers to a cell providing additional radioresources on top of a Special Cell for a UE configured with CA.

The term “Secondary Cell Group” refers to the subset of serving cellscomprising the PSCell and zero or more secondary cells for a UEconfigured with DC.

The term “Serving Cell” refers to the primary cell for a UE inRRC_CONNECTED not configured with CA/DC there is only one serving cellcomprising of the primary cell.

The term “serving cell” or “serving cells” refers to the set of cellscomprising the Special Cell(s) and all secondary cells for a UE inRRC_CONNECTED configured with CA.

The term “Special Cell” refers to the PCell of the MCG or the PSCell ofthe SCG for DC operation; otherwise, the term “Special Cell” refers tothe Pcell.

1. A user equipment (UE) comprising: processor circuitry configured to:perform a downlink (DL) quality measurement; and generating a DL qualityreport based on the DL quality measurement, wherein a definition of theDL quality report matches a definition of quality report in Msg3; andradio front end circuitry coupled to the processor circuitry, andconfigured to transmit the DL quality report to a base station (BS). 2.The UE of claim 1, wherein the DL quality report includes an indicationof a repetition number to achieve a block error rate (BLER) of onepercent.
 3. The UE of claim 1, wherein DL quality report uses a samequality metric as defined in a Msg3.
 4. The UE of claim 1, wherein theprocessor circuitry is further configured to trigger the generation ofthe DL quality report based on receipt of an indication from the BS inan RRC message.
 5. The UE of claim 1, wherein the processor circuitry isfurther configured to trigger the generation of the DL quality reportbased on receipt of a channel state information (CSI) request field indownlink control information (DCI).
 6. The UE of claim 1, wherein theradio front end circuitry transmits the DL quality report in a physicaluplink shared channel (PUSCH).
 7. The UE of claim 1, wherein the DLquality report is an aperiodic report.
 8. A method for enhancedmachine-type communication (eMTC) in a connected mode by a userequipment (UE), the method comprising: performing a downlink (DL)quality measurement; generating a DL quality report based on the DLquality measurement, wherein a definition of the DL quality reportmatches a definition of quality report in Msg3; and transmitting the DLquality report to a base station (BS).
 9. The method of claim 8, whereinthe DL quality report includes an indication of a repetition number toachieve a block error rate (BLER) of one percent.
 10. The method ofclaim 8, wherein DL quality report uses a same quality metric as definedin a Msg3.
 11. The method of claim 8, wherein the generating the DLquality report is triggered based on receipt of an indication from theBS in an RRC message.
 12. The method of claim 8, wherein the generatingthe DL quality report is triggered based on receipt of a channel stateinformation (CSI) request field in downlink control information (DCI).13. The method of claim 8, wherein the transmitting the DL qualityreport includes using a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH).
 14. Themethod of claim 8, wherein the DL quality report is an aperiodic report.15. A non-transitory computer-readable media comprising instructions tocause an electronic device, upon execution of the instructions by one ormore processors of the electronic device, to perform one of moreelements of a method, the method comprising: performing a downlink (DL)quality measurement; generating a DL quality report based on the DLquality measurement, wherein a definition of the DL quality reportmatches a definition of quality report in Msg3; and causing to transmitthe DL quality report to a base station (BS).
 16. The non-transitorycomputer-readable media of claim 15, wherein the DL quality reportincludes an indication of a repetition number to achieve a block errorrate (BLER) of one percent.
 17. The non-transitory computer-readablemedia of claim 15, wherein DL quality report uses a same quality metricas defined in a Msg3.
 18. The non-transitory computer-readable media ofclaim 15, wherein the generating the DL quality report is triggeredbased on receipt of an indication from the BS in an RRC message.
 19. Thenon-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein thegenerating the DL quality report is triggered based on receipt of achannel state information (CSI) request field in downlink controlinformation (DCI).
 20. The non-transitory computer-readable media ofclaim 15, wherein the causing to transmit the DL quality report includescausing to use a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH).s listing ofclaims will replace all prior versions, and listings, of claims in theapplication.